Nearly 200 million people could end up out of work

Nearly 200 million people could end up out of work

The outbreak is expected to wipe out 6.7% of working hours across the world during the second quarter of 2020.

That is the equivalent of 195 million full-time workers losing their jobs.

The worst-hit region is predicted to be the Arab states, with an 8.1% decline in working hours (five million full-time workers).

The ILO says it is "the most severe crisis" since World War Two.

It adds that the eventual increase in global unemployment during the course of 2020 will depend largely on two factors:

• How quickly the world economy recovers in the second half of the year
• How effectively policy measures will boost the demand for labour

There is a high risk that the end-of-year worldwide unemployment figure will be much higher than an initial ILO projection of 25 million people.

Accommodation services and manufacturing badly hit

Different sectors of the economy have been hit in different ways by the sudden downturn in work.

Not surprisingly, with travel at a minimum and social lives put on hold, the accommodation and food services industries are among those suffering most, along with manufacturing, wholesale and retail, and real estate and business.

Together, they account for nearly 38% of the global workforce, with 1.25 billion people employed in these industries around the world