Global Unemployment to Dip to 4.9% in 2024: ILO

Chennai: Despite persisting inequalities in labour markets, the global unemployment rate will fall modestly in 2024 to 4.9 per cent, finds the International Labour Organisation. In January, ILO had predicted that the unemployment rate would go up in 2024.

The 2024 global unemployment rate will stand at 4.9 per cent, down from 5 per cent in 2023. The ILO estimates that the ‘jobs gap’ - which measures the number of persons without a job but who want to work - stands at 402 million persons in 2024. This includes 183 million people who are counted as unemployed.

In its January forecast, ILO had projected that the unemployment rate in 2024 will move up to 5.2 per cent.

However, the downward trend for joblessness is expected to flatten in 2025, with unemployment remaining at 4.9 per cent, the report says.

"Despite our efforts to reduce global inequalities, the labour market remains an uneven playing field, especially for women," said ILO Director-General, Gilbert F. Houngbo.

"To achieve a sustainable recovery whose benefits are shared by all, we must work towards inclusive policies that take into consideration the needs of all workers," he added.

Women, especially in low-income countries, are disproportionately affected by the lack of opportunities. The jobs gap for women in low-income countries is 22.8 per cent, against 15.3 per cent for men. In high-income countries the rate is 9.7 per cent for women and 7.3 per cent for men.

The report finds that family responsibilities can explain much of the difference seen in women’s and men’s employment rates. Globally, 45.6 per cent of working-age women are employed in 2024, compared to 69.2 per cent of men.

Even when women are employed, they tend to earn far less than men, particularly in low-income countries. While women in high-income countries earn 73 cents compared to a dollar earned by men, this figure drops to just 44 cents in low-income countries.

Further, the number of workers in informal employment has grown from approximately 1.7 billion in 2005 to 2.0 billion in 2024.