Angel Gurría, Secretary-General of the OECD
Some 15 million people have joined the ranks of the unemployed in OECD countries since the end of 2007. Unemployment has already reached a record high of 8.5% as a result. Without the right policies and if the recovery fails to gain momentum, OECD unemployment could approach 10% next year. That would mean 57 million people out of work-roughly equivalent to the population of some G8 countries!
The financial and economic crisis has developed into an unemployment crisis, with untenably high economic and social costs. Employment always take time to recover after recessions, but the time lag could be longer this time. Many firms have been wiped out and livelihoods destroyed because of the financial crisis. These are the challenges ministers from around the world will confront when they gather at the OECD Labour and Employment Ministerial Meeting on 28-29 September 2009. Despite stretched budgets and burgeoning debt, they must act decisively to end the jobs crisis.
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