Most of us can agree that we need open economies and open societies. They can bring decent working conditions and raise standards of living. But how can we ensure that the global economy benefits everyone? How can we launch a compact that governs the process we call globalization in a way that puts human needs first? The way business works, whether locally or through transnational service and supply chains, in practice influences how people earn a living. In turn, the way people work determines the operating environment and resources that influence global markets. This interaction between markets and society is at the heart of the International Labour Organization's concerns.

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ILO perspectives and activities balance the diverse viewpoints of Governments, business and workers around the world. Our focus on the world of work puts us at the intersection of the economics of the market and much harder to measure values, such as justice and fairness, dignity and respect. It is at this intersection that business meets the call for decent work, and a global compact to promote the values underlying decent work is being forged by business and the ILO and other UN agencies.

Economic and social factors interplay in meeting the daily challenge of competing in the global marketplace. Business depends for success on access to capital, infrastructure in areas of education, health and environmental safety, institutions for social dialogue, science and technology, communications, transportation and logistics. So too in the workplace, the interaction between economic efficiency and equity demonstrates a productive factor that brings social efficiency. Well-corroborated evidence shows, for instance, that safer jobs are more productive jobs; that child labour undermines longer term economic capacity; that effective policies for gender equality lead to more dynamic business growth; and that a more secure population supports a workforce more able and willing to adjust to economic change.

Delivering the social infrastructure that helps economic and business development take root in the workplace and in the community of operation is what we mean by social efficiency and is a primary aim of the global compact.

Clearly we are not there yet, either in our workplaces or in the societies in which we operate. However, things are changing, in public policy and in business, and transnational business operations are at the cutting edge of this change. Several hundred major transnational corporations and a number of industry associations and other bodies have adopted codes of conduct on business ethics, the environment and labour standards. These attempt to encapsulate values that are difficult to measure and target but which are increasingly considered by companies as important to their corporate reputation and core business strategy.

While welcome in many respects, these developments stand at the start of a long road ahead. Many of the efforts still do not envision the world as a place where all workers have a meaningful voice, where the human rights of children and the human needs for safety, health and a clean environment are made top priorities in the workplace. Even for those that do, a steep learning curve is ahead to ensure transparency, accountability and participation for those with the most at stake in the way progress is measured and reported, and shortfalls detected and corrected.

It is the process that is as important here as the corporate initiative itself. If we get the process wrong, chances are the policy will come out deformed or would not be strong enough to bring about the changes that come from everyone working together in a collaborative spirit to share the fruits of economic growth equitably -- everyone in the workplace, in supply or service chains, and in communities of investment.

Most people earn their living through work. The ILO's focus on decent work for all helps in identifying what really matters for people-centered development and provides the basis for an integrated approach to public and business policy and practice.

The ILO's agenda for decent work is a critical part of what must be done to make global markets work for everybody, and the building blocks to decent work are found in the Global Compact. ILO has been working with business and labour representatives to lead the Compact toward a new type of social entrepreneurship that builds bridges between the dynamic of the market and the natural desire of people for security of income and stability of employment.

Of course, decent work has to be there -- but alone, it will not be enough. Every day that passes brings additional evidence of the need for improved international action, among Governments, business and civil society, in the governance of the global economy. That is why ILO is working in collaboration with other UN agencies to promote the decent work agenda in a larger framework that includes respect and promotion of human rights and the environment. We need to work together, within our respective fields of competence, in a shared "project" of governance for the global economy that puts the needs of people at the heart of decision-making.

We need to blend the realization of civil, political, economic and social rights into, not only public policy institutions, but the day-to-day activities of business, not least supply chain managers. Justice and equity are productive and the more we prove it in action, the more it will be valued by markets. It is conceivable that one day soon markets will start paying attention to labour standards performance as an indicator of the internal health of companies and thus their future earnings potential. Who knows? Wall Street may one day reward companies for their good relations with unions.

Business has a direct stake in putting human needs first. Working conditions that respect the need for human dignity, equality and social protection also bring productive workplaces and competitive businesses.

Many companies and initiatives have already shown the promise of adapting to this broader agenda. The Global Compact offers an opportunity for business leaders the world over to demonstrate that there are business benefits to integrating social and financial goals, and that there are ways to manage costs or risks associated with this new approach. The end result will demonstrate that promoting decent work, human rights and the environment are all necessary steps toward a world in which markets, interacting with society and its stakeholders, help put poverty and human suffering out of business.

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