The International Labour Organisation says stagnated productivity and inequalities will lead to two million workers losing their jobs in 2024, as the global unemployment rate will increase from 5.1 per cent in 2023 to 5.2 per cent.
ILO disclosed this in its latest “World Employment and Social Outlook: Trends 2024” report.
According to ILO, the rate of joblessness and the jobs gap had fallen below pre-pandemic levels, but global unemployment would rise in 2024.
The international labour body blamed growing inequalities and stagnant productivity as causes for concern.
The global unemployment rate has dropped in three consecutive years, declining from 6.9 per cent in 2019 to 5.1 per cent in 2023.
The Director-General of the ILO, Gilbert Houngbo, said, “This report looks behind the headline labour market figures, and what it reveals must give great cause for concern. It is starting to look as if these imbalances are not simply part of pandemic recovery but structural.
“The workforce challenges it detects threaten individual livelihoods and businesses, and we must tackle them effectively and quickly.
“Falling living standards and weak productivity combined with persistent inflation create greater inequality and undermine efforts to achieve social justice. And without greater social justice, we will never have a sustainable recovery.”
OsunDailyNG reports that Nigeria’s unemployment rate increased by 0.1 per cent to 4.2 per cent in the second quarter from 4.1 per cent in Q1 2023.
