World of work report 2010: from one crisis to the next?

Economic recovery from the worldwide financial crisis remains weak and uneven, resulting in persistently high unemployment in some countries and growing job precariousness almost everywhere. This report shows that a sustainable, job-rich recovery is possible—provided that the factors that led to the crisis are tackled.

The report provides answers to these key questions:

• When will employment recover strongly enough to mitigate the effects of the crisis?

• Is there a significant risk that the poor employment prospects will lead to social unrest and erode confidence in policymakers’ ability to provide fair solutions to the crisis?

• Do governments have adequate maneuvering room to support employment recovery while reducing budget deficits?

• How can well-designed employment and wage policies support more balanced growth in countries with large trade surpluses, paving the way for a sustainable global recovery?

• In what ways can the financial sector be reformed to serve the needs of the real economy?