Livelihood of 1.6bn workers at stake - ILO

Kenyans at a past public gathering. FILE PHOTO | NMG 

By Samuel Baya
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Summary

• The livelihoods of about 1.6 billion workers in the informal economy is at risk following the continued sharp decline in working hours globally due to the Covid-19 outbreak, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) has said.
• In a statement on Wednesday the UN labour agency said nearly half of the global workforce stand in immediate danger of having their livelihoods destroyed, warned the agency.

The livelihoods of about 1.6 billion workers in the informal economy is at risk following the continued sharp decline in working hours globally due to the Covid-19 outbreak, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) has said.

In a statement on Wednesday the UN labour agency said nearly half of the global workforce stand in immediate danger of having their livelihoods destroyed, warned the agency.

According to the ILO Monitor third edition: Covid-19 and the World of Work, the drop in working hours in the second quarter is expected to be worse than previously estimated.

“Compared to pre-crisis levels (Q4 2019), a 10.5 per cent deterioration is now expected, equivalent to 305 million full-time jobs. 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,” the statement said.