A construction worker in Barcelona, Spain returns to work in April 2020, wearing a mask to be protected from COVID-19. Photo: © Daniel Ferrer Paez/Shutterstock Authors: Indhira Santos and Michael Weber After several weeks of lockdowns and strict social distancing, some countries are starting to open for business. This process, however, is bound to be…
Social Distancing in a market in Kenya/Photo credit: World Bank/Sambrian Mbaabu Authors: Isis Gaddis and Kathleen Beegle Over the past months, the new coronavirus, or COVID-19, has upended the world of work as we know it. Jobs are disappearing at a breathtaking speed. According to a recent ILO report, 81 percent of employers and 66…
Nurses listen during a training program to learn more about child and adolescent mental health in Monrovia, Liberia/Photo credit: World Bank Authors: Margo Hoftijzer, Victoria Levin, Indhira Santos and Michael Weber Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) programs are well-placed to play an important role in the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic. They have significant…
A photogrid of young people working remotely/from home. Credit to image source available below Author: Michael Weber I argue in this blog that public works can be modernized using digital technology to leverage access for low-income households and communities. This complements previous blogs in this series about how public works can generate incomes and work…
Eastern DRC earlier this year – with appropriate safeguards (individual protective equipment, physical distance between workers, etc.)/Photo credit: Paul Bance Authors: Paul Bance and Ugo Gentilini What is happening to public works during the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) crisis so far? In a previous blog, we argued that public works will be important in supporting informal workers…
Author: Michael Weber
COVID-19 (Coronavirus) has caused record levels of unemployment benefits claims. In the US, new claims reached an historic high of 6.9 million in the week ending March 28. The following week another 6.6 million filed claims, the peak of the 2008/2009 financial crisis.
Authors: Dalal Moosa and Federica Saliola This blog is also available in Arabic. Today, the world is seeing an unprecedented freeze on work and production, a repercussion of the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19) and the measures taken to confine it. reach out to more workers and businesses, and propel their digital economy. The virus…
Author: Ugo Gentilini Let’s start with the facts. A third of the 418 social protection programs world-wide responding to COVID-19 (Coronavirus) are government-funded, non-contributory cash transfer programs. Why do cash transfer programs play such a prominent role? The pandemic demands rapid, concrete a response that injects resources directly. Cash transfer programs tick all the boxes. In…
Authors: Truman Packard and Michael Weber
COVID-19 (Coronavirus) will liquidate livelihoods. In a catastrophic shock, concerns for income and wealth inequality, which inform anti-poverty programs in “normal” times, must take a back seat to concerns with livelihood losses.
Photo by Tim Mossholder from Pexels Authors: Eliana Carranza and Indhira Santos In this blog, we look at the potential of wage subsidies for supporting jobs and incomes during the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) crisis. The crisis affects both workers’ ability to go to work and the labor demand of firms that are forced to…