A Right Against Extreme Wage Inequality: A Social Justice Modernisation of International Labour Law?

Abstract

The ILO centenary celebrated in 2019 offered an occasion for reflection on the past, present and future of international labour law. With inequality described by ILO as ‘one of the most daunting challenges for future of work', international labour law confronts the task of developing regulatory responses to the ever-widening gap between the remuneration of corporate executives and those of low-paid workers. In search of new solutions for reversing this process, this article makes the case for the recognition of a new international labour right against extreme wage inequality grounded in the ‘just share’ imperative of the Declaration of Philadelphia. It also advances a novel regulatory model for implementing this right.