ILO / WORKFORCE AT RISK

The continued sharp decline in working hours globally due to the COVID-19 outbreak means that 1.6 billion workers in the informal economy - that is nearly half of the global workforce - stand in immediate danger of having their livelihoods destroyed, warned the International Labour Organization. ILO

• Categories: News & Features / News Stories / Unifeed
• Video Length: 00:02:27
• Production Date: 29 April 2020
• Asset Language: English
• Personal Subject: GUY RYDER
• Corporate Name: INTERNATIONAL LABOUR ORGANIZATION - ILO
• Subject Topical: DISEASE CONTROL; ECONOMIC SITUATION; LABOUR
• MAMS Id: 2543974
• Parent Id: 2543974
• Alternate Title: unifeed200428a

Description

STORY: ILO / WORKFORCE AT RISK
TRT: 2:27
SOURCE: ILO
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH /NATS

DATELINE: 29 APRIL 2020, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND

Shotlist

1. Wide shot, Ryder and associate at the press conference
2. Close up, Ryder
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Guy Ryder, Director-General, ILO:
4. “Well the figures that we have launched today show that the job destruction effect of this pandemic are actually deepening. We estimate that in the second quarter of this year the loss of full-time jobs is the equivalent of 305 million jobs worldwide. We previously estimated that figure much lower; three weeks ago it was 195 million. So, I think the evidence is that the effect of the lockdowns, the necessary measures being taken to stop the health pandemic, is having a really dramatic effect on jobs in the world. And that's the key point.”
5. Wide shot, Ryder and associate at the press conference
6. SOUNDBITE (English) Guy Ryder, Director-General, ILO:
“The second thing we've tried to do in this third edition of our monitor is to focus on some of the most vulnerable, some of the most exposed people in global labour markets. That's the 60 percent of humanity which earns a living in the informal economy. And here I'm afraid the figures are equally dramatic: we estimate that some 1.6 billion informal workers are now strongly, devastatingly impacted in their livelihoods by what is happening. We estimate that the average income of informal economy workers around the world, the hit will be 60 percent. These are people who don't earn a lot of money in the first instance. So, those the most vulnerable desperately need international solidarity assistance simply to survive, this is the issue.”
7. Wide shot, Ryder and associate at the press conference
8. SOUNDBITE (English) Guy Ryder, Director-General, ILO:
“At the same time as we talk about preserving jobs, protecting the unemployed, we're very interested of course in what's happening to enterprises, and our monitor focuses as well on the impact on enterprises. And there we see that in the sectors most badly hit by the pandemic; that's retail and wholesale, that’s manufacturing, its business services, we are seeing that some 436 million enterprises around the world are at high risk of going under. So, these enterprises too, need support, they need the attention of governments.”
9. Wide shot, Ryder and associate at the press conference

Storyline

The continued sharp decline in working hours globally due to the COVID-19 outbreak means that 1.6 billion workers in the informal economy - that is nearly half of the global workforce - stand in immediate danger of having their livelihoods destroyed, warned the International Labour Organization.

“We estimate that the average income of informal economy workers around the world, the hit will be 60 percent,” said Guy Ryder, Director-General of the ILO. “These are people who don't earn a lot of money in the first instance. So, those the most vulnerable desperately need international solidarity assistance simply to survive, this is the issue.”

According to the “ILO Monitor third edition: COVID-19 and the world of work”, the drop in working hours in the current (second) quarter of 2020 is expected to be significantly worse than previously estimated.

Ryder said “I think the evidence is that the effect of the lockdowns, the necessary measures being taken to stop the health pandemic, is having a really dramatic effect on jobs in the world.”

Compared to pre-crisis levels – the last quarter of 2019, a 10.5 per cent deterioration is now expected, equivalent to 305 million full-time jobs (assuming a 48-hour working week). The previous estimate was for a 6.7 per cent drop, equivalent to 195 million full-time workers. This is due to the prolongation and extension of lockdown measures.

“At the same time as we talk about preserving jobs, protecting the unemployed, we're very interested of course in what's happening to enterprises, and our monitor focuses as well on the impact on enterprises. And there we see that in the sectors most badly hit by the pandemic; that's retail and wholesale, that’s manufacturing, its business services, we are seeing that some 436 million enterprises around the world are at high risk of going under. So, these enterprises too, need support, they need the attention of governments,” ILO’s Director-General said.