A/HRC/37/32 C. Precarious contracts 46. Target 8.8 of the Sustainable Development Goals urges States to protect labour rights. Efforts in many countries to dismantle or limit regulation aimed at protection workers right have, however, resulted in reduced protection of workers, increasing the number of insecure or precarious contracts. Such a deregulation has also been pushed by international financial institutions, which have also promoted precarious contracts and facilitated dismissals as part of austerity-related law reforms.42 47. According to trade unions, deregulation has resulted in contracts where employers are not required to provide any minimum working hours, while employees must be available for work as and when required. Such contracts are used by employers to avoid recruitment and agency costs, and are associated with low pay, income insecurity and insufficient working hours, despite the obligation of employees to be continuously available for work. Deregulation can limit other work possibilities, and the ability to earn enough to cover the costs of living.43 Other casual contracts might provide for minimal hours but may be subject to last-minute changes and reductions. Such insecure contracts are likely to increase in the future with the rise of the “gig economy”.44 48. The above-mentioned types of contracts are said to place workers at a higher risk of poverty.45 Given “the market power of employers over employees [,]employers are able to glean all the flexible benefits associated with zero-hours contracts; whilst all the financial and security risks are transferred to the workers.” 46 They therefore undermine the realization of the Sustainable Development Goals and violate the right to decent work, as contained in the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.47 This has also led to calls for a different assessment of the implications of the indicators under Goal 8: “High levels of underemployment and precarious work mean that the standard unemployment rate is inadequate as a sole measure of the condition of the labour market.”48 49. The establishment of ombudspersons can be helpful for the resolution of workrelated grievances, including on salaries and benefits. In Australia, the Fair Work Ombudsman helps employers and employees to resolve workplace issues, and provides clear information on their rights and obligations. The Ombudsman of the Republic of Latvia has been constantly involved in the protection of the interests of persons at risk of poverty, including the “working poor” and those suffering from insufficient minimum wages and unfair remuneration. D. Occupational health and safety 50. Target 8.8 of the Sustainable Development Goals also calls upon States to promote safe and secure working environments. Despite this, continuing deregulation has led many Governments to remove “red tape” around health and safety regulations that are often perceived as unfairly hindering business and restricting economic growth. In reality, the economic burden of poor occupational safety and health practices is estimated at 4 per cent 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 Stefano Sacchi, “Conditionality by other means: EU involvement in Italy’s structural reforms in the sovereign debt crisis”, Comparative European Politics, vol. 13, No. 1 (2015), pp. 82-83 and 89. See also A/HRC/34/57. Trades Union Congress, Ending the abuse of zero-hours contracts – TUC response to BIS consultation, Equality and Employment Rights Department, London, March 2014. Forms of work in the “gig economy” include “crowdwork” and “work-on-demand via apps”, under which the demand and supply of working activities is matched online or via mobile apps. See Valerio De Stefano, “The rise of the ‘just-in-time workforce’: on-demand work, crowdwork and labour protection in the ‘gig-economy’, ILO, Conditions of Work and Employment Series No. 71, 2016. Netherlands Human Rights Institute, Annual status report 2016: “Poverty, social exclusion and human rights”. Trades Union Congress, Ending the abuse of zero-hours contracts (see footnote 43). See Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights general comment No. 23 (2016) on the right to just and favourable conditions of work (art. 7). Kristy Jones, Tough Jobs: The Rise of an Australian Working Underclass, Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union, September 2016. 11