A groundbreaking study published in Nature challenges the notion that workers from the Global South are harming the North by taking away jobs.
This research shows a stark disparity in labor contributions and earnings: Southern workers perform 90% of the global economy’s labor but only earn 21% of its income. This imbalance subsidizes the North’s lifestyle at the South’s expense.
The study finds that an additional 826 billion hours of Southern labor—equivalent to 369 million workers—silently bolster Northern economies, exceeding the total workforce of the United States and the European Union combined.
This labor isn’t just unskilled; it includes 76% of the highly skilled, 91% of the medium skilled, and 96% of the low skilled labor globally. The South now surpasses the North in high-skilled labor contributions across all skill levels.
Data indicates the Northern development model depends on exploiting external resources, providing no incentive for developing the South.
New Research Reveals the Global South’s Hidden Subsidy of Northern Lifestyles – Upwork Freelancer Office in Bangladesh. (Photo Internet reproduction)
The South cannot mimic the Northern model, lacking other regions to exploit. Instead, it must forge a path that avoids exploitation, similar to China’s use of its workforce and increasing automation.
The study underscores a concerning trend: Southern workers’ wages are 83-98% lower than their Northern counterparts for comparable jobs. This wage disparity has grown over time, worsening North-South income inequality.
Efforts in the past to make things fairer haven’t lasted. During the 1980s and 1990s, poorer countries were pushed to cut costs and focus on exports to make money.
This made things even worse, as companies from richer countries moved their production to take advantage of lower wages, deepening the unfairness.
New Research Reveals the Global South’s Hidden Subsidy of Northern Lifestyles
Although there was a slight improvement from 2005 to 2015, the gap in wages between richer and poorer countries hasn’t really closed.
In 2021, the average worker in the South made only €1.62 an hour compared to €24.95 in the North. This shows how deeply unequal the global economic system is.
To remedy this, the study proposes shifting the power balance through development and poverty reduction strategies.
It suggests setting international minimum wage floors and resource prices, reducing price disparities, and limiting value extraction.
It also calls for ending structural adjustments in financial policies and democratizing global economic institutions.
This would allow Southern governments to enact independent policies for industrial, fiscal, and monetary growth.mpass justice and sustainable development, aiming for a globally balanced future.
Download the study here.
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