East Asia: UN labour agency reports strong job growth in region's chemical industry

The number of jobs in East Asian chemical industries doubled in two decades, while the size of the chemical industry workforce worldwide showed a marked decline in the 1990s, the International Labour Organization (ILO) said today.

"World employment in the production of industrial chemicals fell from a peak in 1994, slightly exceeding 9 million employees worldwide, to 7.9 million in 1997. In contrast, employment increased in most parts of East Asia over the past two decades, growing from 2.4 million in 1980 to 6.1 million in 1995," the United Nations agency said in a new report.

China trebled its chemical industries workforce to 5.4 million from 1.8 million between 1980 and 1999, ILO said.

Europe, on the other hand, having shifted to more profitable specialty products, had gained in productivity and completed many mergers and acquisitions. It showed a drop in the number of sectoral employees to 1.2 million in 1997 from 1.9 million in 1992.

ILO said the report would be discussed at a meeting of government, employer and worker representatives from 27 to 31 October. "The purpose of this meeting will be to discuss the development and application of flexible working arrangements and their impact on employment, working conditions, skills development and career prospects in the chemical industries," it said.