Commentary
International Relations
Trump’s Second Term a Crossroads for Central Europe – COMMENTARY
6 November 2024
18 May 2020
There is a large ground to cover if Central Europe is to be ready for automation and the benefactor of technological changes. If we miss this opportunity by betting on authoritarian strongmen and populist recipes, it will not be just a waste. It will be an actual and very serious threat to our prosperity.
Like many traumatic experiences, the pandemic seems to create a structural break. It affects the way we live and work during the lockdown period, but it may also change our life and the way we go about our jobs and the future of work long after the pandemic crisis has ended.
At once, the possibility of job loss became much more realistic for everyone. To our horror, we also found out it is not only the low-skilled workers who are at risk.
The unemployment rate hit double digits in April in the United States (14,7 per cent) and Canada (13 per cent). The increase of job loss is slower in Europe due to the stimulus packages but most fear it is simply delaying the impact. The expectation is that the employment rate will reach nine per cent across Europe, with South Europe hit the most.