Unemployment will likely soar further in the group of 20 major economic powers without immediate action, Guy Ryder, the director general of the International Labor Organization told CNBC on Friday, comparing the jobs crisis to the 2008-2009 financial crisis and warning it needs to be tackled urgently.
"We have gone backwards. It is quite alarming to see...that unemployment has not gone down, in fact it's gone up," Ryder told CNBC at the G20 finance ministers' meeting in Moscow.
He said 93 million people were currently unemployed in the G20. A report released by the organization earlier this week showed over the last 12 months, unemployment has dropped marginally in half of the G20 countries while it has risen in the other half. Unemployment is above 25 percent in South Africa and Spain; 11 percent or above in France, Italy and for the EU as a whole.
The report said an average of some 30 percent of those out of work had been been unemployed for over one year. Jobs have been shed mostly in manufacturing and construction in advanced economies whilst construction has been the leading job creating sector in several emerging economies.
"The fact that the latest growth forecasts from the IMF are a downward revision means that unless we do change course on labor issues, the situation will continue to get worse, not better. That's a harsh reality,"
He said that the fact that the United States was linking its monetary policies to labor market outcomes was encouraging and that the country was moving in the right direction.
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