The ILO is calling for new support as job losses continue after the earthquake in Turkey and Syria
Hundreds of thousands of workers in both countries have lost their lives because of the earthquakes, preliminary findings show in the latest ILO assessments of the disaster’s impact on the labor market.
“Job promotion is central to a successful and inclusive response to this disaster,” said ILO Director-General Gilbert Houngbo.People can start to rebuild their lives if they have rebuilt their lives. We owe it to those who lost so much in the earthquake to ensure that the principles of social justice and decent work are embedded in the recovery and reconstruction process. “
Türkiye: monthly losses higher than $150 million
Earthquakes leave more 658,000 workers are unable to earn a livingand more than 150,000 jobs are unusable, initial findings suggest.
In the face of high income and job losses, the ILO warns of increasing risks to occupational safety and health, as well as child labour.
Affected workers face average income losses of more than $230 per month, as long as the disruption continues. Overall, the crisis is likely to be contained reduced take-home pay by around $150 million per month in the affected areas, the ILO reported.
The lost work hours are spread across the affected area. Statistics show that in Malatya, 58.8 percent of working hours are estimated to have been lost, with comparable figures of 48.1 percent in Adıyaman and 45.2 percent in Hatay.
The affected areas in Türkiye are home to more than four million workers, most of whom work in agriculture, manufacturing, trade, or other “low-value-added” jobs.
Syria: Continued ‘unemployment’
In Syria, where 12 years of civil war have already taken a heavy toll on the economy and labor market, the ILO estimates that about 170,000 workers have lost their jobs as a result of earthquakes. This has a direct impact on the environment 154,000 houses and more than 725,000 people.
Around 35,000 blogs, small and medium enterprises are also involved. This “idle” for a while has led to total loss of regular work income to at least $5.7 million a month.
Them the worst five areas – Aleppo, Hama, Idleb, Lattakia and Tartous – is home to an estimated 42.4 percent of the country’s population. This includes around 7.1 million people of working age of 16 and up, 22.8 of which are women.
Send to-quake
Immediately after the earthquakes struck, the ILO set to work addressing the emergency needs of workers and their families.
In Turkey: The ILO is already planning and implementing labor market and industrial recovery strategies.
- Enterprise programs based on emergency services include participating businesses to enable them to provide decent and sustainable services.
- The ILO helps business organizations and trade unions to operate and provide essential services to their members.
- Specific initiatives will focus on seasonal agricultural workers, child laborers and refugees.
- Support will be provided to social partners to ensure that they can continue to participate in recovery and reconstruction initiatives as important participants of the national social dialogue.
In Syria: New and ongoing efforts are reaching out to residents in earthquake-prone areas.
- A series of training campaigns for technicians to improve occupational safety and health practices.
- Intensive operations are underway in the affected areas of Aleppo.
- Grants support ILO social partners to help them reach affected workers and businesses, as well as improving occupational safety and health practices.
