On 23 June 2020, the world and the UN celebrate the invaluable work, dedication and sacrifice of frontline public service workers to keep people and communities safe during the ongoing Covid19 crisis. Since the of the outbreak, health and social services workers as well as public service workers across all services have been carrying out essential, life-saving work under dramatic conditions and with a serious shortage of personal protective equipment (PPEs) putting at risk their own lives, physical and mental health as well as those of their families.

Recognising the daunting task posed by the global pandemic on local and regional government authorities and frontline public service workers alike and highlighting the vital role of public service continuation to save lives and ensure the resilience and social cohesion of communities, Public Services International (PSI) and United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG) issue today a joint call to national authorities and to global policy-making and financial institutions.

In their joint statement, PSI and UCLG demand a voice at the national and international policy tables shaping a post-Covid world and call to “invest on a priority basis in ever stronger quality public services with universal access to ensure a swift recovery and avoid a post Covid-19 social and environmental catastrophe”.

Global LRG social partners also call on their respective memberships to “engage in constructive dialogue and collective bargaining to find shared solutions to guarantee essential service continuation, while maintaining the highest standards of safety for public service workers and users”.

Commenting on the launch of the joint PSI-UCLG statement Rosa Pavanelli, PSI General Secretary said: “The tragedy of Covid19 has brutally exposed the human and social costs of decades of neoliberal and austerity public service-cutting policies now born by the most vulnerable. The crisis has also uncovered the daunting inequalities between public and privatised services in terms of quality and access for users, as well as occupational health and safety and income security for frontline workers. Back to business as usual is not an option. Today, World Public Service Day 2020, local government authorities and workers stand united calling for strong public investment in public services to ensure the preparedness and resilience of our communities and societies in the aftermath and recovery and ahead of future crises”.

On 13 May 2020, UCLG, Metropolis network, UN-Habitat and PSI debated these issues during a Live Learning Experience session that brought together almost 200 participants from UCLG’s representatives of local and regional governments (LRGs), their associations, PSI’s LRG workers’ unions and partner organisations. It aimed to share world LRG social partners’ experiences in confronting the common challenges posed by Covid-19 and shared solutions to continue public service delivery while protecting the health and safety of frontline workers.