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28/10/2021

Unequal Vaccine Distribution Hits Global Labour Market, Says ILO Research




Unequal Vaccine Distribution Hits Global Labour Market, Says ILO Research
According to a recent study by the International Labour Organization (ILO), the total loss of working hours in 2021 because of restrictions imposed for curbing the Covid-19 pandemic is equivalent to about 125 million full-time jobs.
 
According to the ILO, the data indicates that the recovery in the global labor market this year has not been to the levels as was expected previously.
 
The number for loss of working hours as calculated by the ILO in its latest report is 25 million more than the organization’s prediction on the issue in its earlier report in July this year. The ILO report pointed out that this difference was because of anomalies in the rate of the rollout of Covid-19 vaccines between the wealthier and the poorer countries.
 
The ILO said that compared to the pre-pandemic levels, the number of hours worked is slated to be 4.3 per cent lower globally.
 
But when the calculation of the figure is based on the income level of countries, the difference compared to pre-pandemic levels is only at about 2.2 per cent, with the wealthier countries witnessing only about 3.6 per cent loss compared to 5.7 per cent loss of working hours in poorer countries.
 
The disparities between the work hour losses between the countries were also caused by the economic stimulus packages that were implemented by governments in response to the pandemic, the ILO said. The global organization also noted that if the poorer countries were provided with more equitable access to Covid-19 vaccines, they would be able to make up about a quarter of the lost working hours.
 
The hit to the loss in working hours in the second quarter of the current year was slightly cushioned by the rollout and acceptance of Covid-19 vaccines at the beginning of the year, the ILO said. At that point in time, the ILO had forecast a loss of 6 per cent which was 1.2 percentage points higher than the 4.8 per cent that was ultimately actually recorded.
 
The efforts of the ILO to compare how the global labor market has been impacted by the coronavirus pandemic is guided by the usage by the organization of hours worked, instead of the unemployment rate, for example, since there are differences in the definitions of employment according to countries.
 
(Source:www.iqstockmarket.com)

Christopher J. Mitchell

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