Covid-19 Wipes Out an Estimated 500 Million Jobs Worldwide

The damage to labor markets from the coronavirus is proving worse than anticipated, according to the International Labour Organization, which also sees a much slower recovery at the end of this year.

The ILO said that global working hour losses so far this year have been “considerably larger” than previously estimated. In the second quarter, working hours were 17% lower compared with the end of 2019, equivalent to almost 500 million jobs. That’s up from 400 million projected in June.