Lula says action with Biden can inspire decent work

The search for improvements with regard to the dignity and rights of workers was the subject of conversation between presidents Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Joe Biden, of the USA, by telephone, this Thursday (16). In addition, they dealt with the climate crisis.

“It is the first time that I deal with a president who is interested in workers”, highlighted Lula. “Your policies and speeches about the world of work sound like music to my ears and certainly together we can inspire other rulers to look at workers’ issues”, she added.

The theme concerns a joint initiative to advance decent work in the economy of the 21st century, to be proposed by the US and Brazil, with the participation of representatives of trade union movements and the ILO, on the occasion of the next General Assembly of the United Nations, which takes place in September in New York. Still this month, there may be a bilateral meeting between the two presidents, during a G20 meeting, in India.

The invitation made by Biden for Lula to participate in a joint action in defense of decent work was released by the Brazilian government at the end of July.

Read too: Biden invites Lula to the initiative in defense of decent work at the UN

As recently reported, the government intends to use the memorandum of understanding signed between the Ministry of Labor and the United States Department of Labor, which includes the defense of application workers, as a basis for negotiations on the subject. According to Folha de São Pauloo, the document brings a series of areas of bilateral cooperation, such as the promotion of racial and gender equality, the fight against child and forced labor and the guarantee of a safe and healthy work environment.

Decent work is one of the 17 points of the Sustainable Development Goals established by the UN in 2015 and is focused on “promoting sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all”.

Read too: Advancement of work analogous to slavery requires measures to confront capital

environmental crisis

In yesterday’s conversation, Lula and Biden also addressed the climate issue. The Brazilian president showed solidarity with the country due to the fire in Hawaii, considered the worst in US history in the last 100 years, with 106 dead so far.

Starting from the dialogue about the tragedy, Lula highlighted the importance of advancing seriously in the debate on climate change and detailed the discussions and scope of the Amazon Summit, held in Belém, last week, preceded by the Amazon Dialogues, with the participation of almost 30 thousand people.

According to Planalto, President Biden said he agreed “100%” with the concerns expressed by Lula, recognized the responsibilities of developed countries and the need to support developing countries in dealing with the effects of the climate crisis. He recalled the US$500 million contribution to the Amazon Fund and highlighted the importance of building a strong partnership, in view of Brazil’s leading role in these issues.

With information from the Planalto Palace