The International Labour Organisation (ILO) has published a report on the impact of the Covid19 pandemic on the construction sector.
The Covid19 pandemic has had a significant impact on all social and economic sectors and industries. For this reason, the ILO is committed to developing and updating a set of reports. These reports cover the current state of labour markets and policy responses or measures taken to reduce the impact of the virus on the economy, workers, employers and others.
The reports, which will be updated on a regular basis, are addressed, among others, to ILO constituents –governments, employers and workers–, for their assessment and comments on these documents. The aim is to serve as a repository of good practices and lessons learned in order to, as stated on the ILO website: “Build back better in the post-pandemic future”.
The impact of Covid19 on the construction sector
Construction has been one of the sectors most affected by the pandemic. Its sensitivity to economic cycles is added to the particularly vulnerability of enterprises and workers to the drastic decline in economic activity resulting from the pandemic. In addition, we must take into account the increasing occupational risks caused by the virus to this professionals, which worsens the danger rate of these trades, which are high.
Despite this negative situation, construction is an industry with a great potential for job creation, which could stimulate recovery. On the other hand, as a positive point, experts suggest that the security measures taken as a result of this crisis will support the digital transformation of the sector.
The report argues that tripartite cooperation and social dialogue are tools to advance towards this recovery, calling on governments, trade unions, employers and other stakeholders to respond to these new demands of the construction sector.
Access the full report through this link.