In 2020, the global workforce lost an equivalent of 255 million full-time jobs, an estimated $3.7 trillion in wages and 4.4% of global GDP, a staggering toll on lives and livelihoods. While vaccine rollout has begun and the growth outlook is predicted to improve, an even socio-economic recovery is far from certain.
The choices made by policymakers, business leaders, workers and learners today will shape societies for years to come. At this critical crossroads, leaders must consciously, proactively and urgently lay the foundations of a new social contract, rebuilding our economies so they provide opportunity for all.
In this context, the Forum remains committed to working with the public- and private sectors to provide better skills, jobs and education to 1 billion people by 2030 through initiatives to close the skills gap and prepare for the ongoing technological transformation of the future of work.
An economist explains how to create a fairer society
The former deputy governor of the Bank of England discusses ways to address rising inequality
Georgian baywatch: First female lifeguards make a splash for equality
Georgia has passed anti-discrimination laws in an effort to move closer to the European Union, but gender stereotypes and inequality remain deeply rooted.
Ecuador approves same-sex marriage as LGBT+ groups hail landmark week
After a couple's request to be married was denied by Ecuador's civil registry, they sued and now the Latin American nation is the 27th country to allow same-sex marriage.
Globots and telemigrants: The new language of the future of work
Richard Baldwin, professor of international economics at the Graduate Institute in Geneva, says new technology is changing the nature of globalization.
Here are two approaches to accelerate gender parity for a gender-equal future
Equality must become a reality within our lifetimes. The World Economic Forum is helping drive two approaches towards higher gender parity, globally!
The world's richest countries are skimping on parental leave: UNICEF
Some of the wealthiest nations in the world provide little or no government-supported maternity or paternity leave for new parents, a United Nations report has said.
The punishment gap: how workplace mistakes hurt women and minorities most
In finance, medicine, politics and even in schools, women and minorities are more harshly reprimanded and face greater future consequences for their errors.
Botswana has decriminalized gay sex. But, it’s still illegal in 70 countries
Botswana has legalized homosexuality but 70 nations, many of them in Africa, still punish LGBTI people for expressing their sexuality.
Fathers need to care for themselves as well as their kids – but often don’t
Wanting to be a great dad can motivate men to push themselves to work longer and harder than they may have thought possible, but it's often at the expense of their health.
To improve women's access to finance, stop asking them for collateral
Almost 80% of women-owned businesses have limited or no access to credit. The reason? They lack collateral. But a new approach by lenders could change this.
With flowers and personal stories, Japan sexual abuse survivors seek reform
Victims of sexual violence say the law is allowing rapists to escape justice.
With a little help from my friends: the social lives of married women in rural India
Research into the social lives of women in rural India has revealed that local support groups can help provide a social network that is otherwise lacking for many.