01 July

A UN agency says that the coronavirus pandemic caused a sharp drop in global working hours between April and June. The agency estimates that the decline is equivalent to the loss of 400 million full-time jobs.

The International Labour Organization announced on Tuesday that 14 percent of global working hours were lost during the second quarter of 2020, compared to the fourth quarter of 2019. That figure is up 3.3 percentage points from a projection released in May.

The Americas have been impacted most severely. The region had an estimated working time loss of 18.3 percent. It was followed by Europe and Central Asia at 13.9 percent, and the Asia Pacific region at 13.5 percent.

The ILO says the pandemic is disproportionately affecting female workers. Forty percent of them work in hard-hit sectors, such as food and accommodation.

Regarding the outlook for the six-month period through the end of this year, the ILO predicts that, in the worst scenario, working hour losses could reach as high as 11.9 percent, compared to the last three months of 2019. It says global working hours are unlikely to return to pre-crisis levels by the end of this year.

Director-General Guy Ryder said the impact of the pandemic on the labor market is becoming increasingly serious, especially in developing countries. He expressed particular concern about the situation in the Americas. Ryder stressed that large-scale economic relief measures are needed to support workers and businesses.

NHK