Global unemployment tops 200 million

By Fatih Erel

GENEVA (AA) - Global unemployment rose by 3.4 million this year compared to 2016 and surpassed 200 million, the UN's International Labour Organization (ILO) said on Monday.

"Over 201 million workers worldwide are currently unemployed, an increase of 3.4 million compared to 2016," the ILO’s World Employment and Social Outlook 2017 report said.

Noting that enterprises, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), played a crucial role in creating decent jobs around the globe, the report said: "Between 2003 and 2016, the number of full-time employees within SMEs nearly doubled, with the share of total employment attributable to SMEs rising from 31 percent to 35 percent."

"However, in the past year, their contribution to total employment has stagnated. Between 2015 and 2016 the contribution of SMEs to total employment remained virtually unchanged, increasing from 34.6 to 34.8 percent," the report added.

SMEs account for 52 percent of total employment in developing economies, compared with 41 percent in developed economies, the ILO said.

"The global unemployment rate stands at 5.8 per ent, and is not expected to drop any time soon," ILO warned.

"Despite some progress made over the past decades, nearly 780 million workers in emerging and developing countries (corresponding to almost every third worker) are still living in conditions of extreme or moderate poverty," said the report.

The report also said the private sector in 2016 employed 2.8 billion individuals worldwide, representing 87 percent of total employment.