Globalization of Work

The term globalization became popular in the last decade of the 20th century. Although the phenomenon itself is actually much older, with periods of globalization in the 16th and 19th centuries, current globalization is marked by several phenomena at the same time: new markets linked globally operating 24 hours a day; new technological tools; new actors, such as multinational corporations, global networks of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and other groups transcending national boundaries; and new international rules increasingly binding national governments and reducing the scope for national policy (UNDP 1999). Globalization is not so much driven by technological progress, but is rather the outcome of political and ideological change. It is a human (or rather state) led process.