“This 2018 International Labor Organization (ILO) report takes stock of current social dialogue efforts, including tripartism, in terms of the changing nature of work and in the context of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. It examines best practices and shortcomings on a region-by-region basis. It also analyzes several threats to social dialogue: automation and digitalization, migration and changes in demography, climate change, and the backlash to globalization.

While noting the importance of social dialogue and tripartism, the paper points out that widening income inequality, weakening labor market institutions, increasing automation, and informal sector employment could all potentially weaken the effectiveness of social dialogue. Climate change also poses a threat because the work of labor institutions and social partners to manage distributional impacts lags behind actual needs in many countries. The report outlines such elements of these challenges at a regional and national level.

The ILO reiterates the importance of social dialogue and tripartism in meeting the SDGs and the need for “decent work.” The final chapter of the report includes suggestions to strengthen social dialogue and labor institutions, including enhancing collective bargaining capacity, but notes that more evidence-based research (including better statistics) is needed to measure the impact of social dialogue.”