Jakarta, April 30 -- A continued sharp decline in working hours globally amid the COVID-19 outbreak implies 1.6 billion workers in the informal economy are in immediate danger of losing their livelihoods, the International Labour Organization (ILO) has reported.
In a statement received here on Thursday, the ILO said the number represents nearly half the global workforce.
"As the pandemic and the jobs crisis evolve, the need to protect the most vulnerable becomes even more urgent," ILO director general Guy Ryder said in the statement.
According to the 'ILO Monitor third edition: COVID-19 and the world of work', the drop in working hours in the current, or second, quarter of the year is expected to be significantly worse than the number es...