World's highest unemployment rates

Millions of jobs were lost in the 2008 global financial crisis, and with growth slowing, the job market is looking shaky once again. 

The U.S. shed 8.3 million jobs during the recession and only 43 percent of the lost jobs have been recouped in the last 34 months. 

Younger workers in particular are facing the worst job prospects in recent times. The unemployment rate for young workers in the euro zone is over 22 percent; in Greece and Spain it is over 50 percent. 

With this in mind, we’ve put together a list of 10 countries with the highest unemployment rates among the world’s 50 largest economies. The ranking is based on 2011 annual average unemployment rates from the International Labour Organization (ILO). The ILO gathered the numbers from national statistics sources. 

So, which major economies around the world have the highest jobless rates?

No. 10

France - 9.3%

No. 9

Poland - 9.6%

No. 8

Turkey - 9.8%

No. 7

Colombia - 10.8%

No. 6

Iran - 11.5%

No. 5

Portugal - 12.7%

No. 4

Ireland - 14.4%

No. 3

Greece -17.7%

No. 2

Spain - 21.65

No. 1

South Africa - 24.7%



source: CNBC