Report Shows Darker Side of Globalization

Lower costs of transportation, communication and other technology allow businesses to move to the most profitable points on the globe. Such relocations have contributed to rising economies in China, India, Russia and Brazil, with those four nations accounting for almost half of the world’s labor supply. In the meantime, wages as a percentage of gross domestic product have declined in most wealthy countries, reports the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Income gaps have widened in Japan, some European nations and the US. People must follow the lead of businesses, by being flexible about the type of work they do and prepared to move. “The OECD urged governments to resist protectionism and instead adapt employment policies to help people move from one job to another with greater ease and sense of security,” reports Brian Love for Reuters. Governments can follow the lead of nations like Denmark in developing programs that protect individual people rather than individual jobs, especially those no longer relevant for a changing world. – YaleGlobal