The ILO and the BRICS

The ILO provides technical inputs and support to the BRICS on policies that advance social justice and promote decent work. The ILO conducts analysis and provides policy recommendations on labour, economic and social issues to embed ILO policies in multilateral processes. It acts as a knowledge partner to the Employment Working Group.

• The labour force participation rate  increased to 60.6 per cent in 2024.
• The BRICS countries have performed well in terms of the main measures of labour market slack, such as the unemployment and jobs gap rates: both indicators were, already as of 2023, almost 1 percentage below their 2019 pre-pandemic value and stand at 5.3 and 9.5 per cent respectively.
• Informality rates are stagnating at 62 per cent since the pandemic.
• Developments regarding the youth unemployment rate have not been so strong, as in 2023 it only managed to decrease to its 2019 pre-pandemic value at 17.5 per cent. 

  Source: ILOSTAT, February 2024, more information: https://ilostat.ilo.org

Russia holds the BRICS Presidency in 2024.

Priorities of the Russian Presidency are (1) Policy and security, (2) Cooperation in economy and finance, (3) Cooperation in the humanitarian and cultural spheres.

The Russian Presidency has set four priorities for the Employment Working Group:

• Development of a system of vocational guidance and lifelong professional education for the entire population
• Platform employment: the role in the labour market and the problems of regulating the work of platform workers
• Ensuring safe work and social security for employees
• Development of social support for citizens of the BRICS countries: Modern tools of social policy

The ILO, together with the ISSA, is the lead knowledge partner supporting the Group.

Contact ddg@ilo.org for more information