Rethinking Sustainable Work: A Global Vision for Human and Planetary Well-Being

In response, the contributors to this Special Issue propose a revitalized and expanded definition of sustainable work—one that addresses both the environmental crisis and the social degradation of labour.

The International Labour Review’s Special Issue on sustainable work marks a pivotal shift in the global discourse around the future of labour. In an era marked by accelerating climate change, rapid technological transformation, and increasing socioeconomic inequality, this collection of scholarly contributions urges us to reimagine work not just as a means of earning a living but as a cornerstone of societal and environmental sustainability.

This issue boldly departs from the conventional frameworks that have long dominated labour policy discussions—such as employment protections, labour flexibility, and job creation—and instead introduces a profoundly interdisciplinary vision of sustainable work. Integrating economic, ecological, and social dimensions, the research featured here presents a compelling call to redefine the role of work in our lives and societies.

Beyond Decent Work: A Deeper Inquiry into Human Flourishing

For decades, global labour policy has largely prioritized short-term flexibility over long-term worker well-being. In the name of competitiveness and market efficiency, many governments and institutions have implemented reforms that weakened employment protections, often sidelining broader considerations of worker health, community stability, and environmental impact.

This Special Issue challenges these policy trajectories and asks a series of deeper, more transformative questions:

• What kinds of work genuinely support human flourishing and community resilience?

• How should labour be organized to ensure ecological sustainability and social justice?

• What democratic mechanisms can empower workers to shape the nature and purpose of their work?

By engaging with these questions, the authors in this issue advocate for a comprehensive reconceptualization of work—not merely as economic activity, but as a vital, interconnected aspect of human and planetary life.

Tracing the Evolution of the Sustainable Work Concept

The concept of sustainable work has evolved significantly since its early use within socio-technical frameworks. Originally, the idea focused on managing the growing intensification of labour and addressing worker fatigue, stress, and burnout. However, this approach rarely acknowledged the ecological ramifications of industrial production or the systemic depletion of natural resources.

As the articles in this issue show, the ecological dimension gradually faded from view in both academic research and policy design. This omission has had far-reaching consequences, as it hindered the development of work models that respect planetary boundaries and human limits alike.

In response, the contributors to this Special Issue propose a revitalized and expanded definition of sustainable work—one that addresses both the environmental crisis and the social degradation of labour. Sustainable work, in this broader sense, requires the recognition of interdependent crises: environmental collapse, economic inequality, and the erosion of democratic participation.

Towards Integrated Sustainability: The Social-Ecological Nexus

The most powerful insight in this issue is the argument that the sustainability of work can no longer be discussed in isolation from the broader ecosystems in which it is embedded. Several authors demonstrate how extractive economic systems not only exhaust natural resources but also degrade human potential—leading to job insecurity, mental health issues, and the weakening of civic life.

This integrated perspective brings together reproductive labour (care work, community-building, domestic responsibilities) and productive labour (market-driven economic activities) within a unified framework. By doing so, it challenges the prevailing economic orthodoxy that sees only market-based work as valuable and instead elevates the essential, yet often invisible, contributions that sustain life and society.

Herzog and Zimmermann, in particular, highlight the necessity of including reproductive activities in any serious conversation about sustainable work. These are the foundational practices—childcare, eldercare, health care, community organizing—that sustain our societies but remain undervalued and underpaid, if paid at all.

A Democratic Vision for Work and Production

The Special Issue also underscores the need to democratize the structures through which work is organized and governed. Giving workers a voice in the nature, purpose, and impact of their labour is not merely a matter of ethics—it is a prerequisite for genuine sustainability.

This means rethinking corporate governance, empowering workers through participatory mechanisms, and reshaping legal and institutional frameworks that currently favor capital over labour. It means recognizing trade unions not only as bargaining agents for wages and conditions but as key actors in shaping the future of work in line with democratic, ecological, and social goals.

In practical terms, this vision calls for:

• Democratic enterprise models, such as worker cooperatives and participatory corporate boards.

• Global legal frameworks that enforce sustainability standards across supply chains.

• Policy innovation that promotes the redistribution of work, such as shorter working weeks, job sharing, and universal basic services.

• Empowered labour movements that act as drivers of green transitions and social transformation.

Global Interdependence and the Call for Transnational Solidarity

Work today is shaped by global supply chains, international trade agreements, and transnational labour migration. As such, the issue of sustainable work cannot be tackled at the national level alone. Contributors to this Special Issue emphasize the need for global cooperation and solidarity among workers, unions, civil society organizations, and international institutions.

This global perspective calls attention to the asymmetries between the Global North and Global South in labour conditions, environmental burdens, and access to policy tools. Sustainable work, therefore, also entails confronting global inequalities and building mechanisms for fairer distribution of resources, risks, and responsibilities.

A Vision for a Just and Livable Future

At its heart, this Special Issue is a powerful call to action. It asks us not merely to protect existing jobs or improve workplace safety but to fundamentally transform how we conceive of work in the 21st century. Sustainable work is not a niche policy concern—it is a foundational requirement for a just, resilient, and ecologically viable future.

By uniting ecological and social sustainability with democratic participation and economic justice, this collection of research offers a roadmap for policymakers, unions, scholars, and workers alike. It challenges us to move beyond incremental reforms and to embrace a holistic, ambitious vision of work that prioritizes both people and the planet.

The International Labour Review is proud to present this landmark contribution to the evolving global conversation on work. As climate disruption, technological upheaval, and economic precarity reshape our world, the ideas in this Special Issue offer a vital foundation for rethinking work in a way that sustains life—human and non-human—for generations to come.