HUMAN CAPITAL AS AN ASSET: The workforce implications of the pandemic highlight PAGE 9 AN ACCOUNTING FRAMEWORK FOR THE NEW WORLD OF WORK the need for better human capital accounting HUMAN CAPITAL METRICS - THE CURRENT STATE OF PLAY The pandemic has had a devastating effect on the global workforce. The International Widespread job Labour Organization reports that in June 2020, 93% of the world’s workers were living in countries with workplace closure measures in place. Although restrictions are losses: could easing, work has been heavily disrupted. In addition, the sharp economic downturns that have resulted from the crisis have dealt a severe blow to incomes and jobs. The International Monetary Fund projects that more than 95% of countries will see per- 5 things have been capita incomes fall in 2020 . The International Labour Organization also estimates that hours worked globally declined 14% in the second quarter of 2020 compared with 6 different? the final quarter of 2019, equivalent to 400 million full-time jobs . In the US, the unemployment rate jumped from 3.5% in February to 14.7% in April 7 before falling to 10.2% in July . More than sixteen million people were unemployed that month. The rise in unemployment was considerably lower in the EU: the EU unemployment rate was 7.1% in June 2020, up only modestly from 6.5% in February. But this was only because governments provided extensive incentives for companies to retain workers. As of June, such employment subsidy programmes covered 45 million jobs, or one-third of the workforce, in Germany, France, Britain, Italy and 8 Spain . While no sector or industry was left untouched by COVID-19, some have been hit harder than others. In retail, the crisis accelerated the shift to online shopping 9 and triggered mass lay-offs and bankruptcies . Following an 80% drop in airline passenger traffic, airlines took various measures to address the crisis, including reduced working hours, unpaid leave, pay cuts, furloughs, temporary and permanent lay-offs along with new hiring freezes. The aerospace sector resorted to similar measures. Earnings for the tourism and hospitality sector decreased dramatically: In April, the industry was losing more than $534 million in earnings and 12,000 jobs per 10 day, on average . Even the impact on the healthcare and pharmaceutical sector is mixed. With elective surgeries on hold, hospitals are facing falling revenue and rising costs, and medical device manufacturers are seeing declining demand for their products used in non- 11 essential medical procedures . Revenue opportunities from the approval of new pharmaceutical products to fight COVID-19 are difficult to estimate.