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News > Peru

Latin America Lost 26 Million Jobs in 2020 Due to the Pandemic

  • Citizens form a new migrant caravan heading to the U.S., San Pedro Sula, Honduras, March. 30, 2021.

    Citizens form a new migrant caravan heading to the U.S., San Pedro Sula, Honduras, March. 30, 2021. | Photo: EFE

Published 9 April 2021
Opinion

This region has yet to resolve issues related to persistent inequality, forced labor, low productivity, and limited social protection coverage.

The International Labour Organization (ILO) reported that Latin America lost 26 million jobs due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

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The average employment rate fell from 57.4 percent to 51.7 percent. Job contractions were recorded in formal and informal sectors, with the latter being the most affected.

The employment reduction did not affect equally men and women. Over the last year, female unemployment exceeded by 18 percentage points the decrease in male employment.

Furthermore, economic recovery forecasts for this year show high levels of uncertainty. ILO warned that expectations on the labor market's improvement "should be very cautious."

New containment measures such as border closures, restrictions on certain economic activities, and difficulties on mass vaccination processes might slow down regional economies and widen social gaps.

ILO proposed recovery strategies based on supports for enterprises, protection of workers, employment promotion, and social dialogue to find solutions.

"High levels of informality, reduced fiscal space, persistent inequality, forced labor, low productivity, and limited social protection coverage are part of the region's unfinished business," ILO Director Vinicius Pinheiro said.

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