It has been very hard for the core labor standards to be put into practice in developing countries because of several factors. A major characteristic of the developing countries which has made it hard for the core labor standards to be implemented is that of low income among the population.
Other major factors that have significantly contributed to this problem are the natural resources which have not been sufficiently exploited and also lack of enough skilled human resource due to a large number of illiterate people.
Existence of traditions and cultural practices has also led to the emergence of a twofold market whereby there are both the traditional and modern sectors operating simultaneously. In terms of existing markets, the developing countries suffer from the problems of inadequate capital and alteration of existing markets.
There are certain important necessities for any developing country to experience significant rates of growth. Since industries play a major role in contributing towards the growth of a country, it is vital for developing countries to experience industrial growth and especially through exports.
It is through this kind of growth that problems like high poverty levels and insufficient earnings that have been so prevalent can be eradicated. Industrial growth is also very helpful in curbing the problems of lack of capital and low output levels. Majority of people (around two thirds) in developing countries get a very minimal share of the total world’s income, i.e., only one sixth.
Most developing countries do not consider the core labor standards to be very useful to them. They in fact view them as being applicable only to the developed countries. There are difficulties that are encountered by the developing countries in the rapid expansion of industrial sector if CLS are strictly adhered to.
This is because, it is only after certain development levels have been attained that labor standards improve to become favorable to the countries that apply them.
It is vivid that prior to the attainment of this level; there are hardly any improvements that can be made to the labor standards because if one tries to do so, it will result to hindrance in industrial growth by lowering the competitive rate of a country in the world and raising the normal cost of labor.
The following arguments have been raised against the application of CLS in developing countries
- In developing countries, there are people who believe that they can not do without sweatshops because they also existed in the developed countries. Such people argue that having a job, no matter how bad it is, is better that being jobless. International Labor Organization helps to monitor the existing sweatshops and ensure that the right standards are kept.
- The labor standards have attracted criticism from different people with some arguing that they contribute to the market’s inflexibility and also make the markets to lack efficiency. The proponents however argue that the labor standards are useful in increasing the output. They are also helpful in production of quality goods and services, because the employees are allowed to take part in management issues and there exists an excellent relationship between the employer and the employee.
- Some people hold the opinion that the labor situation of a given country is a result of the development in the country’s economy. However, it is not always automatic that the growth in economy will result to the improvement of the labor condition because there are other factors that play a significant role.
- There have been speculations by some people that the motive of imposing labor standards on developing countries has not been a right one. It has been speculated that one of the reasons could be to maintain the high income of workers in developed countries.