Davos WEF 2018: Strong Global Growth Masks A ‘Fractured Workforce’, Says WEF Co-Chair Sharan Burrow

Global growth rates of 3.5 percent or more may be painting too optimistic a picture of the world economy which is still suffering from weak fundamentals in the form of a fractured workforce.

“The lack of jobs and stagnant wages will blow apart the bubble that is being created,” Sharan Burrow, general secretary at International Trade Union Confederation told BloombergQuint's Menaka Doshi on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum at Davos, Switzerland.

Burrow, who is also co-chair at the WEF this year, does not buy into the commentary that this year will be marked by strong global growth and low unemployment, calling it a “desperate grab for looking optimistic”. Record employment in the U.S. involves “people working two-three jobs to make ends meet. Qualified journalists in Europe too are struggling to survive as the quality of work is on a downhill,” she said.

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For India, the biggest challenge is to formalise jobs faster with 93 percent of its workforce in the informal economy.

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