Young people are being hit especially hard by the coronavirus crisis as their jobs dry up and education is disrupted, according to the International Labour Organisation .
“How this will eventually impact the young people who will come to the labour market next year or in two years’ time, that’s a really big question,” said Sangheon Lee, director of the ILO’s Employment Policy Department. Both problems together mean “this disproportionate impact we already start to see will continue in the years to come.”
Millennials were already hit by the financial crisis more than a decade ago, leaving them with insecure work and stunted opportunities. They also faced a range of challenges at the onset of the pandemic, including a sluggish economy and the rise of automation, the ILO said in March. The move from campuses to online learning didn’t go smoothly everywhere, revealing deep digital divides, especially in lower-income countries, according to the ILO. Nearly one in six of those polled said their education had come to a complete stop, and more than half expected their studies to be delayed.