How the Pandemic Impacted Employment Around the World
One year in, the global pandemic has impacted employment and changed the nature of work in a multitude of ways.
As job loss rose across the globe, many countries introduced job retention schemes to steady unemployment rates. At the same time, working hours for many who held on to their jobs were reduced.
To put it in perspective, COVID-19’s negative impact on working hours globally has been around 4x more than that caused by the Global Financial Crisis in 2009.
Working Hard or Hardly Working?
As of January 2021, an estimated 93% of the world’s workforce lives in a country with some type of workplace closure restrictions still in place.
While profits were slashed across many industries, a majority of companies actually avoided firing people. However, 64% of firms either reduced wages, hours, or furloughed workers temporarily.
Compared to Q4’2019, total global working hours were reduced 8.8% in 2020. This is equivalent to approximately 255 million jobs.
Here’s a look at the working hour losses in a number of different countries.
| Country | 2020 Work Hour Losses Compared to Q4'2019 |
| Peru | 27.5% |
| Honduras | 24.3% |
| Panama | 23.5% |
| Argentina | 21.0% |
| Colombia | 20.9% |
| Bolivia | 20.5% |
| El Salvador | 19.4% |
| Ecuador | 17.6% |
| Costa Rica | 17.5% |
| Nepal | 17.4% |
| Armenia | 16.8% |
| Chile | 16.7% |
| Guatemala | 16.4% |
| Kuwait | 16.4% |
| Dominican Republic | 15.5% |
| Brazil | 14.9% |
| Bahamas | 14.8% |
| Eritrea | 14.7% |
| Turkey | 14.7% |
| Cyprus | 14.6% |
| Azerbaijan | 14.1% |
| Morocco | 14.1% |
| North Macedonia | 13.8% |
| India | 13.7% |
| Venezuela | 13.7% |
| Philippines | 13.6% |
| South Africa | 13.6% |
| Italy | 13.5% |
| Myanmar | 13.4% |
| Portugal | 13.4% |
| Cape Verde | 13.3% |
| Spain | 13.2% |
| Georgia | 13.1% |
| Oman | 13.1% |
| United States Virgin Islands | 13.0% |
| Moldova | 12.9% |
| Slovakia | 12.8% |
| United Kingdom | 12.8% |
| Greece | 12.6% |
| Cuba | 12.5% |
| Guyana | 12.5% |
| Ireland | 12.5% |
| Mexico | 12.5% |
| Bangladesh | 12.2% |
| Uganda | 12.2% |
| Bhutan | 11.9% |
| Suriname | 11.8% |
| Kyrgyzstan | 11.7% |
| Algeria | 11.6% |
| Kazakhstan | 11.5% |
| Maldives | 11.4% |
| Paraguay | 11.4% |
| Jamaica | 11.3% |
| Trinidad and Tobago | 11.3% |
| Uruguay | 11.2% |
| Belize | 11.1% |
| Malaysia | 11.1% |
| Iraq | 10.8% |
| Malta | 10.6% |
| Austria | 10.5% |
| Barbados | 10.4% |
| Jordan | 10.4% |
| Lebanon | 10.3% |
| Eswatini | 9.9% |
| Sri Lanka | 9.9% |
| Saint Lucia | 9.8% |
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | 9.7% |
| Guam | 9.6% |
| Egypt | 9.5% |
| Ethiopia | 9.5% |
| Kenya | 9.5% |
| Qatar | 9.5% |
| Rwanda | 9.4% |
| Canada | 9.3% |
| Congo | 9.3% |
| Libya | 9.3% |
| Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | 9.3% |
| United Arab Emirates | 9.3% |
| Israel | 9.2% |
| Pakistan | 9.2% |
| United States | 9.2% |
| Sudan | 9.1% |
| Zimbabwe | 9.1% |
| Bahrain | 9.0% |
| Liberia | 9.0% |
| Guinea-Bissau | 8.9% |
| Nigeria | 8.9% |
| Sao Tome and Principe | 8.9% |
| Romania | 8.8% |
| Ukraine | 8.8% |
| South Sudan | 8.7% |
| Angola | 8.6% |
| Hong Kong | 8.6% |
| Puerto Rico | 8.6% |
| Equatorial Guinea | 8.5% |
| Russia | 8.5% |
| Uzbekistan | 8.5% |
| Chad | 8.4% |
| France | 8.4% |
| Gabon | 8.3% |
| Saudi Arabia | 8.3% |
| Indonesia | 8.2% |
| Western Sahara | 8.2% |
| Slovenia | 8.0% |
| Montenegro | 7.8% |
| Singapore | 7.8% |
| Syria | 7.8% |
| Gambia | 7.7% |
| Guinea | 7.6% |
| Haiti | 7.6% |
| Serbia | 7.5% |
| Lesotho | 7.4% |
| Tonga | 7.4% |
| Belgium | 7.3% |
| Comoros | 7.1% |
| Madagascar | 6.9% |
| Djibouti | 6.8% |
| Mauritius | 6.7% |
| Democratic Republic of the Congo | 6.6% |
| Afghanistan | 6.5% |
| Botswana | 6.4% |
| Fiji | 6.3% |
| Germany | 6.3% |
| Iceland | 6.3% |
| Senegal | 6.3% |
| Lithuania | 6.1% |
| Bulgaria | 6.0% |
| Tunisia | 6.0% |
| Channel Islands | 5.9% |
| Iran | 5.9% |
| Namibia | 5.9% |
| French Polynesia | 5.7% |
| Croatia | 5.5% |
| Japan | 5.4% |
| Mauritania | 5.3% |
| Vanuatu | 5.3% |
| Hungary | 5.2% |
| Mozambique | 5.2% |
| Sweden | 5.2% |
| Vietnam | 5.2% |
| Malawi | 5.1% |
| Central African Republic | 5.0% |
| Togo | 4.9% |
| Cambodia | 4.8% |
| Samoa | 4.8% |
| Australia | 4.7% |
| Ghana | 4.7% |
| Estonia | 4.5% |
| Thailand | 4.5% |
| Brunei Darussalam | 4.4% |
| North Korea | 4.4% |
| Czech Republic | 4.3% |
| Laos | 4.3% |
| Netherlands | 4.3% |
| Cameroon | 4.2% |
| Côte d'Ivoire | 4.2% |
| China | 4.1% |
| Albania | 3.9% |
| Taiwan | 3.9% |
| Sierra Leone | 3.8% |
| Switzerland | 3.8% |
| Turkmenistan | 3.8% |
| South Korea | 3.7% |
| Luxembourg | 3.7% |
| Nicaragua | 3.7% |
| New Caledonia | 3.5% |
| Poland | 3.5% |
| Denmark | 3.3% |
| Latvia | 3.3% |
| Mali | 3.3% |
| Benin | 3.2% |
| Tajikistan | 3.2% |
| Timor-Leste | 2.7% |
| Burkina Faso | 2.6% |
| Zambia | 2.6% |
| Mongolia | 2.5% |
| Norway | 2.5% |
| Somalia | 2.5% |
| Macau | 1.9% |
| Papua New Guinea | 1.8% |
| Solomon Islands | 1.8% |
| Tanzania | 1.8% |
| Belarus | 1.3% |
| Finland | 1.3% |
| Yemen | 1.3% |
| Niger | 1.1% |
| New Zealand | 0.8% |
| Burundi | -0.1% |
The loss of working hours has impacted Southern Europe, South Asia, the Americas, and the Caribbean most significantly. Not surprisingly, these regions are all heavily reliant on tourism and hospitality to fuel their economies.
Job Losses and the Future of Work
Working hour losses, however, do not just come from reductions in hours. The ILO approximates that the blame for working hour losses can be shared equally, with around half due to job losses and half due to a reduction in working hours.
Worldwide employment losses in 2020 were equal to 114 million jobs.
However, a large number of people have notably been deemed ‘inactive,’ rather than unemployed, reducing the global labor force participation rate overall.
ℹ️ Economic inactivity describes a situation wherein a person is either unable to work or is not actively seeking employment.
Although a rebound in working hours and jobs is expected in 2021, the pandemic’s effects on how we work, and the kinds jobs that are available will have a deeper long-term effect on the global labor force participation.
» Want to learn more? Check out our COVID-19 information hub to help put the past year into perspective
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