Achieving UN Sustainable Development Goal 8: Economic Growth and Decent Work For All

This book brings together knowledge on how to achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goal 8, to bring societal change through sustainable economic growth and decent work for all by 2030. At its core is the great challenge of achieving economic growth without compromising the environment, while ensuring respect for fundamental human rights, and in particular the right to employment with equal and safe work conditions. This book provides a critical analysis of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 8 in the 2030 Agenda, its targets and indicators, to reveal biases, tensions and contradictions that need to be addressed to achieve this goal and to guide policymaking. The role and potential of academia to contribute to achieving this SDG is scrutinized. Chapters examine and assess specific targets for SDG 8, which includes policies, resource efficiency, youth employment, child labour and sustainable tourism. Higher education institutions' tools for capacity building are presented, examining how education and academic research can play a role in achieving the SDG 8 targets. Overall, this book offers a synthesis of how research and higher education can make a difference in achieving a complex SDG. This book will be of great interest to academics and professionals working on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and can be used as a policymaking guide for 2030 and beyond. The Open Access version of this book, available at www.taylorfrancis.com, has been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives (CC-BY-NC-ND) 4.0 license.

Lotta Dellve is a Professor in Work science at the Department of Sociology and Work Science at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden and Professor in Ergonomics at the Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden. Sharon Fonn is a Professor in the School of Public Health at the University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa, and guest professor in Global Sustainable Development, focusing on ensuring healthy lives and promoting well-being for all (SDG 3) at Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg. Gunnar Köhlin is Director of the Environment for Development Initiative and Senior Lecturer in the Department of Economics at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden. Katrin Skagert holds a PhD in Public Health and Community Medicine from the University of Gothenburg and is a Senior Researcher at the Research Institutes of Sweden (RISE) and Lecturer in the Department of Sociology and Work Science at Gothenburg University.

1. The potential for academia to contribute to achievement of SDG 8: Sustainable economic growth and decent work for all 2. Sustainable economic growth: A critical assessment of Target 8.1 3. Productivity, employment and structural transformation in the face of the climate crisis: The case of South Africa 4. Implementing policies for decent work and economic growth: The role of sustainable human resources management 5. Improving resource efficiency: Technical progress urgently needed for sustainability 6. Decent work over the course of a life: A critical evaluation of Target 8.5 as exemplified by senior workers 7. Unlocking young people's potential through active inclusion?: Battling youth unemployment in Sweden and beyond 8. Child labour: Causes, policies, and challenges to achieving Target 8.7 9. Safe work environments: Inequality in occupational disorders and the rights of compensation for migrant workers 10. Sustainable tourism: A critical assessment of Target 8.9 11. The integration of decent work into a selection of university degree programs and beyond: Reflections on European and African experiences 12. Academic capacity development for achieving SDG 8: Capacity needs assessments and educational implications 13. Approaching the interrelated challenges in SDG 8 with academic tools