The number of unemployed people around the world reached an estimated 201.8 million in 2013, the United Nations’ labor agency said Monday, with new job opportunities not growing fast enough to absorb a growing workforce.
The number of jobless people increased by 4.9 million in 2013 over the previous year, bringing the total global unemployment rate to 6%, the the International Labor Organization said in a report. Young people aged 15 to 24 are the most hard-hit by joblessness, with unemployment rates for that age group reaching 13.1 percent.
The ILO recommended “job-friendly macroeconomic policies,” praising expansionary monetary policy in large advanced economies where unemployment rates would likely be an estimated 1 to 2 percentage points higher due to fiscal crises.
The global jobless rate will likely increase to 6.1 percent in 2014 as the number of unemployed increases another 4.2 million, said the report.