1.6 Billion Risk Losing Jobs: ILO | 30 Apr 2020

Recently, the International Labour Organization (ILO) has warned that nearly half of the entire global workforce is in immediate danger of having their livelihoods destroyed by the coronavirus pandemic.

Informal workers at risk: Due to Covid-19 lockdown, three-quarters of workers (some 1.6 billion people) engaged in the informal economy have suffered massive damage to their capacity to earn a living.
- Further, without alternative income, these workers and their families would have no means to survive.
- The global workforce is 3.3 billion people, of which more than two billion people work in the informal economy.
Hard-hit Sectors: The worst-affected sectors would be accommodation and food services, manufacturing, wholesale and retail trade, and real estate and business activities.
Suggestions
- The ILO calls for urgent, targeted and flexible measures to support workers and businesses those in the informal economy and others who are vulnerable.
- Measures for economic reactivation should follow a job-rich approach, backed by stronger employment policies and institutions, better-resourced and comprehensive social protection systems.
- International coordination on stimulus packages and debt relief measures will also be critical to making recovery effective and sustainable.
  - International labour standards, which already enjoy tripartite consensus, can provide a framework.

The informal sector, also known as the unorganised sector, is the part of any economy that is neither taxed nor monitored by any form of government.
The informal sector provides critical economic opportunities for the poor.
The informal sector is largely characterized by skills gained outside of a formal education, easy entry, a lack of stable employer-employee relationships, and a small scale of operations.
Unlike the formal economy, the informal sector’s components are not included in GDP computations.
The government of India has launched Pradhan Mantri Shram Yogi Maandhan Yojana as a social security for the unorganised workers.
- It is a voluntary and contributory pension scheme.

International Labour Organization (ILO)

Established in 1919 by the Treaty of Versailles as an affiliated agency of the League of Nations.
- League of Nations was disbanded in 1946 and powers and functions of ILO transferred to United Nations
Became the first affiliated specialized agency of the United Nations in 1946.
Headquarters: Geneva, Switzerland
Received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1969.
- For improving peace among classes.
- Pursuing decent work and justice for workers.
- Providing technical assistance to other developing nations.
The organization has played a key role in
- Ensuring labour rights during the Great Depression of 1929.
- Decolonization process.
- The creation of Solidarność (trade union) in Poland.
- The victory over apartheid in South Africa.
It is the only tripartite U.N. agency. It brings together governments, employers and workers of 187 member States, to set labour standards, develop policies and devise programmes promoting decent work for all women and men.