Domestic workers among hardest hit by COVID crisis, says UN labour agency

COVID-19 has had a “catastrophic” impact on workers, the head of the International Labour Organization (ILO) said on Wednesday, with lost working hours higher than originally forecast, and equivalent to 495 million full-time jobs globally in the second quarter of the year. 

The recovery of the global jobs market is going into reverse, the UN labour agency, ILO, said on Monday, blaming COVID-19 and “other multiple crises” that have increased inequalities within and between countries. 

Job losses or reduced working hours due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic cost the world the equivalent of 255 million jobs in 2020, the UN International Labour Organization (ILO) said on Monday, noting that the “massive impact” was nearly four times the number lost during the 2009 global financial crisis.