(14 March 2014) – The International Labour Organization’s Global Employment Trends 2014 report calls for a switch to more employment-friendly policies and an improvement in labour incomes to boost economic growth and job creation.
Despite a weak economic recovery, labour markets continued to stall last year as the global number of unemployed reached 202 million. Corporate profits are up and equity markets are looking strong, but that has not translated into better long-term employment prospects.
The root causes of the global crisis have not been prop¬erly tackled. The financial system remains the Achilles heel of the world economy. The state of many banks is such that many sustainable enterprises, notably small ones, have limited access to credit, thereby affecting productive investment and job creation.
Also, global labour incomes continue to increase at a slower pace than justified by observed productivity gains, thus affecting aggregate demand. Little progress is being made in reducing working poverty and vulnerable forms of employment such as informal jobs and undeclared work. If confirmed, this trend would unambiguously delay the achievement of development goals.