Covid-19 Lockdown in Ecuador: Are there Gender Differences in Unemployment?

Abstract

To fight Covid-19, governments have imposed restrictions on personal mobility and social interactions which may have negative consequences in the labor market. These consequences may be different across demographic groups particularly for female workers. We examine whether the policy that restricted operations in some economic sectors affected formal employment for Ecuadorian female workers differently. We use a difference-in-differences-in-differences model to compare female employees working in restricted economic sectors with other workers, before and after the lockdown policy. The results show that the number of unemployment spells rose by approximately 15 per cent for women working in the restricted economic activities. We also document a decrease in the probability of being employed, which is particularly strong for the youngest women (15–24 years-old), oldest women (45–65 years-old), and less educated female workers. We conclude that the lockdown policy imposed in Ecuador is a plausible explanation for women’s job loss in the formal sector.