Two years into the Covid-19 pandemic and there is little left unaffected by the outbreak.
While many social gatherings have resumed, with the global distribution of vaccinations, one of the most significant and long-lasting effects has been felt in the international job market. Since March 2020, millions have lost their jobs or seen their work environments change drastically to adapt to a new way of life.
In the Middle East and North Africa, one in three young people said they, or someone in their family, had lost their job due to coronavirus this year.
The figure is a significant rise from the previous year, when one in five young Arabs said they or someone they knew had lost their job as a result of the pandemic.
The findings were published on Tuesday in the ASDA’A BCW Arab Youth Survey, which showed that most, about two thirds of young Arabs, had yet to find another job.
Egypt’s economy was among those deeply affected by the pandemic. The majority of citizens of the Arab world’s most populous country, which relies heavily on tourism for its economic stability, underwent profound changes to their work lives.
Nour, 28, was forced out of her job as a marketing strategist at a local company this year. She said the pandemic created a major division in her workplace with some enforcing preventive safety measures, including mask-wearing and social distancing, and others who were not keen to follow such rules.
Being a member of the former camp, Nour said she quickly found herself ostracised by superiors, who did not respond well to being told how to act in the workplace.
As business began to dwindle and the company started to let staff go, she found herself increasingly being pushed out, even having her desk reassigned to a co-worker, and eventually she felt forced to resign.
“What I learnt from my experience at my last job is that during tough times, nepotism, friendships and other loyalty mechanisms can keep someone in their job even if their efficacy is less than their co-workers,” she said.
As she searches for a new job, Nour said the pandemic has made her reassess her priorities and redefine what she looks for in a role.
“Now, before I consider taking a job, I will inquire about the company culture and their healthcare benefits. The pandemic highlighted the importance of these two things for me."
She is also considering pursing a passion project that she can "grow with time", as many of her friends did during the pandemic.
This entrepreneurial spirit was highlighted in the survey, which showed a quarter of young Arabs would prefer to work for themselves or their family, up from 16 per cent in 2019.
Anwar, 28, studied tourism in the hope that he would work within one of the Egypt's largest sectors. After the 2011 uprising that caused the widespread shutdown of the tourism industry, he was forced to fall back on construction work. He had experience in construction, having taken on odd jobs during his teenage years for extra money.
“I spent a lot of time as a day labourer on construction sites when I was a kid. When I couldn’t find work after the revolution, I thought that the most logical option was to fall back on what I already know how to do,” he said.
After the outbreak of Covid-19, the majority of construction projects ceased, leaving thousands of labourers without jobs, including Anwar.
“The streets were lined with day labourers like me who couldn’t find any work. I would see them every morning sitting on the sides of Cairo’s main roads, waiting for any work they could get."
Work has begun to pick up again and many of the old construction sites are operating once more, making Anwar hopeful of better opportunities to come.
In Lebanon, the double effect of severe Covid-19 restrictions that lasted several months and an economic meltdown, now in its second year, has dashed employment opportunities for young people.
The collapse has pushed 78 per cent of the population into poverty, up from 28 per cent in 2019, UN data shows.
Sukaina, 25, said the pandemic and the financial crisis have cost her not one but two jobs in the past year.
She lost her job as a fitness instructor after the gym that employed her closed temporarily due to Covid-19 safety measures. A high number of infections discouraged clients from working out at the gym, pushing the management to trim staff numbers.
She began work as an optometrist at a laser eye centre at the beginning of the country's Covid-19 lockdown in January, before losing that job after the value of the Lebanese pound plummeted.
“I had to continue working for free just because I wanted to gain experience and keep busy during the pandemic,” she said.
She has yet to find another job but is now looking for employment abroad, “just to get out of here".
“I no longer have hope in this country, in trying to fix a society that doesn’t want to be fixed," she said.
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Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
The Bio
Hometown: Bogota, Colombia
Favourite place to relax in UAE: the desert around Al Mleiha in Sharjah or the eastern mangroves in Abu Dhabi
The one book everyone should read: 100 Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. It will make your mind fly
Favourite documentary: Chasing Coral by Jeff Orlowski. It's a good reality check about one of the most valued ecosystems for humanity
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
Results:
5pm: Conditions (PA) Dh80,000 1,400m | Winner: AF Tahoonah, Richard Mullen (jockey), Ernst Oertel (trainer)
5.30pm: Handicap (TB) Dh90,000 1,400m | Winner: Ajwad, Gerald Avranche, Rashed Bouresly
6pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 1,600m | Winner: RB Lam Tara, Fabrice Veron, Eric Lemartinel
6.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 1,600m | Winner: Duc De Faust, Szczepan Mazur, Younis Al Kalbani
7pm: Wathba Stallions Cup (PA) Dh70,000 2,200m | Winner: Shareef KB, Fabrice Veron, Ernst Oertel
7.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh90,000 1,500m | Winner: Bainoona, Pat Cosgrave, Eric Lemartinel
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Profile
Company: Justmop.com
Date started: December 2015
Founders: Kerem Kuyucu and Cagatay Ozcan
Sector: Technology and home services
Based: Jumeirah Lake Towers, Dubai
Size: 55 employees and 100,000 cleaning requests a month
Funding: The company’s investors include Collective Spark, Faith Capital Holding, Oak Capital, VentureFriends, and 500 Startups.
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The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylinder turbo
Power: 240hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 390Nm at 3,000rpm
Transmission: eight-speed auto
Price: from Dh122,745
On sale: now
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
The most expensive investment mistake you will ever make
When is the best time to start saving in a pension? The answer is simple – at the earliest possible moment. The first pound, euro, dollar or dirham you invest is the most valuable, as it has so much longer to grow in value. If you start in your twenties, it could be invested for 40 years or more, which means you have decades for compound interest to work its magic.
“You get growth upon growth upon growth, followed by more growth. The earlier you start the process, the more it will all roll up,” says Chris Davies, chartered financial planner at The Fry Group in Dubai.
This table shows how much you would have in your pension at age 65, depending on when you start and how much you pay in (it assumes your investments grow 7 per cent a year after charges and you have no other savings).
|
Age
|
$250 a month
|
$500 a month
|
$1,000 a month
|
|
25
|
$640,829
|
$1,281,657
|
$2,563,315
|
|
35
|
$303,219
|
$606,439
|
$1,212,877
|
|
45
|
$131,596
|
$263,191
|
$526,382
|
|
55
|
$44,351
|
$88,702
|
$177,403
|
MATCH INFO
Norwich City 1 (Cantwell 75') Manchester United 2 (Aghalo 51' 118') After extra time.
Man of the match Harry Maguire (Manchester United)
'How To Build A Boat'
Jonathan Gornall, Simon & Schuster
Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
City's slump
L - Juventus, 2-0
D - C Palace, 2-2
W - N Forest, 3-0
L - Liverpool, 2-0
D - Feyenoord, 3-3
L - Tottenham, 4-0
L - Brighton, 2-1
L - Sporting, 4-1
L - Bournemouth, 2-1
L - Tottenham, 2-1
Brief scores
Toss India, chose to bat
India 281-7 in 50 ov (Pandya 83, Dhoni 79; Coulter-Nile 3-44)
Australia 137-9 in 21 ov (Maxwell 39, Warner 25; Chahal 3-30)
India won by 26 runs on Duckworth-Lewis Method
World ranking (at month’s end)
Jan - 257
Feb - 198
Mar - 159
Apr - 161
May - 159
Jun – 162
Currently: 88
Year-end rank since turning pro
2016 - 279
2015 - 185
2014 - 143
2013 - 63
2012 - 384
2011 - 883
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
