THE HOT STORY

OECD-wide employment expected to grow this year and next

The OECD's Employment Outlook 2026 reveals that the unemployment rate across member countries stands at 4.9%, and has been at or below 5.0% for more than four years. Total employment reached 670m in May 2026, marking a 26% increase since 2001, and is expected to grow by 0.3% in 2026 and 0.6% in 2027. Despite this growth, real wages are lagging, with one-third of countries experiencing lower wages than five years ago. “OECD labour markets have been strong and resilient – employment is at record highs and unemployment rates are near historic lows,” OECD Secretary-General Mathias Cormann said. “But workers' purchasing power is not keeping up. The answer is boosting labour productivity with better education policies, adult learning options, job mobility and technology adoption.”

Zawya EN

WORKFORCE

FIFA World Cup: one in nine plan to call sick

Late-night matches during the 2026 FIFA World Cup have prompted employers to offer more flexible working arrangements. A survey by Robert Walters revealed that 11% of expatriates in the UAE planned to take sick leave after watching their national teams, while 34% intended to work remotely. Jason Grundy, managing director of Robert Walters Middle East, noted that temporary flexibility can enhance productivity and employee wellbeing. He said: "Introducing temporary flexible working arrangements . . . allows employees to better balance their work and personal commitments." The findings indicate a growing trend of employers adapting to global sporting events.

Khaleej Times Online

LEGAL

Dubai workers can now file employment complaints online

Workers in Dubai can now submit employment complaints via the DubaiNow app. The new feature, called "Worker's Voice," allows employees to report issues related to wages, working conditions, accommodation, and safety. Digital Dubai announced the service, which has been developed by Dubai Police, enabling both individual and collective complaints. The app streamlines the process, allowing workers to file complaints digitally without needing to visit service centres.

Gulfnews.com

HEALTH & WELLBEING

Healthy living 'is key to career success'

Gulf Times has spoken with health advocate Khawla al-Bahr about the role of sport and healthy lifestyles in preparing young people for employment and more productive lives. "A healthy mind exists in a healthy body," she says. "Young people entering the workforce are also the generation that will shape future families and communities. Mothers of young children have a unique opportunity to establish healthy habits at home and raise children who value exercise and balanced nutrition." Al-Bahr lauded Qatar's National Sport Day for helping transform public attitudes towards exercise. "It has changed mindsets among both adults and children," she says.

Gulf Times

ECONOMY

IMF warns of sharp slowdown in global economy

Global growth is forecast to decline from 3.5% in 2025 to 3% in 2026 before climbing back to 3.4% in 2027, according to the IMF's latest World Economic Outlook. The IMF identified an increased dependence on AI and renewable energy as two factors that helped offset the negative impact of the US-Iran war on the global economy. “The global economy as a whole has, so far, weathered the shock from the war better than feared,” the organisation's researchers said. “Movements in and repercussions from the main channels of transmission - commodity prices, inflation expectations, and financial conditions - have been relatively limited.”

The Hill

Financial Times

INTERNATIONAL

AI job disruption come for Ireland's tech sector

Bloomberg reports on how Ireland is more exposed to AI-driven labour market disruption than other European countries. More than 6% of the country's workforce is employed in the tech sector, higher than the European Union average, and Ireland is heavily exposed to US multinationals including Google, Meta, and Amazon, many of whom are cutting jobs as they invest in AI processes. There are also signs that AI is having an impact on early-stage hiring. Nevertheless, Colin Hunt, chief executive of financial services group AIB, says that Ireland’s longstanding reputation as a reliable location for multinational firms means it can withstand the pressure. “We are going through a period clearly of labour market loosening in the tech sector,” he said. “The impact is being felt. But will Ireland remain a key hub for tech in Europe? Yes.”

Bloomberg

China’s Alibaba to ban Anthropic AI for employees

Alibaba has announced a ban on its employees using Anthropic's artificial intelligence tools, effective July 10, amid concerns over potential security risks. The company has classified Anthropic's Claude Code as high-risk, a move which follows Anthropic's decision last month to send a letter to the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, blaming the Chinese company of “brazenly” and “illicitly” attempting to extract its AI capabilities. Anthropic claimed Alibaba had carried out “the largest known distillation attack” on it to date. Alibaba employees will be required to uninstall all Anthropic models and agent products and instead use the Chinese company’s own AI assistant, Qoder.

CNBC

Japan's first national LGBTQIA+ education plan is 'inadequate', experts say

Japan's first national LGBTQIA+ education plan has been labelled "inadequate" by experts and community members. Released after three years of debate, the plan lacks legally binding requirements for schools and institutions to educate on sexual orientation and gender diversity. Dr Hiroyuki Taniguchi, a law expert at Chuo University in Japan, expressed concern over the plan's vague language and lack of specific goals, which he said could hinder progress for LGBTQIA+ rights. "The underlying law . . . imposes only a non-binding, 'best-efforts' obligation . . . it remains unclear what would count as fulfilling that," he said, adding: "Because the plan sets no specific goals, benchmarks, or limits, it leaves considerable room for conservative or restrictive interpretations to take hold at the level of local governments and individual schools."

ABC Online

Guinea court reduces former Prime Minister’s corruption sentence

An appeals court in Guinea has reduced former Prime Minister Ibrahima Kassory Fofana’s prison sentence to three years and nine months. Fofana, who had been detained since April 2022 in pretrial detention on illicit enrichment and money laundering charges before being granted provisional release four months ago, was initially sentenced to five years by a special financial crimes court set up after the September 2021 coup that ousted former President Alpha Condé, under whom he served.

Bloomberg

OTHER

Meta releases first image model since Mark Zuckerberg’s AI overhaul

Meta has launched Muse Image, its first in-house artificial intelligence image-generation model from Meta Superintelligence Labs, as the company looks to attract creators, advertisers, and paying subscribers while reducing its reliance on third-party AI technologies. The model, led by Alexandr Wang's team, follows the April release of the Muse Spark large language model and is available for free through the Meta AI app and website, WhatsApp, and Instagram Stories, with advanced features reserved for subscribers to Meta's paid plans. Muse Image will also power new advertising tools within Meta's Advantage Plus platform, enabling brands to create and refine AI-generated marketing images more efficiently. Meta said the model can intelligently modify creative assets, generate multiple on-brand variations, and reduce the number of revisions required for advertising campaigns.

CNBC

Forbes

Financial Times

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