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REFILING: LEAD: G-8 agrees on support for vulnerable workers, eco-friendly workplaces+
(Japan Economic Newswire Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) NIIGATA, Japan, May 13_(Kyodo) _ (EDS: UPDATING WITH CHAIR'S STATEMENT ISSUED AFTER MEETING)
Labor officials from the Group of Eight nations on Tuesday agreed on the need to create labor policies to support the so-called "working poor" and other socially vulnerable people as well as the need to promote environmentally friendly workplaces.
"I'm sure that our dialogues on the inequality issue will produce a comprehensive synergy effect when each country draws up its own labor policies," Japanese Health, Labor and Welfare Minister Masuzoe Yoichi said at a joint press conference after wrapping up a three-day G-8 labor meeting in Niigata city.
The G-8 officials issued a statement after the event, warning that globalization could "entail disparities and adjustment difficulties in labor markets" and called for introducing effective career consulting and skills development for the vulnerable who fail to benefit from globalization.
Vladimir Spidla, the European commissioner for employment, social affairs and equal opportunities, told the press conference that the G-8 states should address the widening of the income gap by taking into account cultural backgrounds and industrial structures.
The G-8 groups Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia and the United States. The Niigata meeting also drew labor officials from the European Union as well as the heads of the International Labor Organization and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.
Thailand and Indonesia were invited to attend Tuesday's morning session. Uraiwan Thienthong, Thai minister of labor, said, "The working poor must access proper social protection."
As steps to reinvigorate economies, the statement urged the member states to "promote local development and job creation by facilitating the effective use of local resources and policies," calling for active participation by local governments and nonprofit organizations.
The statement also incorporated the "Niigata Global-Balance Principle," which pushes for a balance between employment and environment policies.
Participants expressed hopes that the agreement will give impetus to consensus-building on the climate change issue, which is set to top the agenda during the G-8 summit in July in Hokkaido.
Specifically, the statement reaffirmed that the G-8 countries can help "displaced workers from (climate change)-affected industries make a transition to new jobs, and encourage skills development that responds to environmentally friendly innovations and industrial changes."
Workers in some ski resorts, for instance, are believed to face the risk of losing their jobs as a result of declining snowfall, a global warming phenomenon, and may be encouraged to switch employment, according to Japanese labor officials.
At the press conference, Erman Suparno, Indonesian minister of manpower and transmigration, urged the participants in the Niigata meeting to ensure sufficient social protection and proper employment conditions are afforded to Indonesian workers in the G-8 nations.
The participating nations also agreed to promote flexible work arrangements including telecommuting, so that parents with children as well as old-age people can remain in employment as the graying of the population advances.
Copyright ? 2008 Kyodo News International, Inc.
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