Research Note: Gender Differences in Employment During the COVID-19 Epidemic

We investigate the impact of the COVID-19 epidemic on gender disparities in three employment outcomes: labor force participation, full-time employment, and unemployment. Using data from the monthly Current Population Survey, in this research note we test individual fixed-effects models to examine the employment status of women relative to that of men in the nine months following the onset of the epidemic in March of 2020. We also test separate models to examine differences between women and men based on the presence of young children. Because the economic effects of the epidemic coincided with the summer months, when women's employment often declines, we account for seasonality in women's employment status. After doing so, we find that women's full-time employment did not decline significantly relative to that of men during the months following the beginning of the epidemic. Gender gaps in unemployment and labor force participation did increase, however, in the early and later months of the year, respectively. Our findings regarding women's labor force participation and employment have implications for our understanding of the long-term effects of the health crisis on other demographic outcomes.

Social Security On Labor Markets to Address the Aging Population in Selected ASEAN Countries

The world is becoming older, and aging in the developing countries of the ASEAN region is unfolding faster than most developed countries in the United States and Europe. This paper examined the effectiveness of old age income security programs mandated in selected ASEAN countries. These programs sought to address the aging problem to encourage the government to promote the aging labor force's efficiency and increase labor force productivity. Furthermore, the study examined the effect of old-age dependency, increase in the life expectancy, and GDP per capita on labor force productivity using a panel data set from selected ASEAN countries from various income brackets, specifically Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam, which are also classified as yellow group nations that are in the process of the demographic dividend implementation. Using the Multiple Regression Model, the researchers found out that the Old-Age Dependency Ratio positively impacts Labor Force Participation Rate. However, GDP per Capita, Life Expectancy, and the Non-contributory fund decrease the Labor Force Participation Rate.

Role of Female Labor Force Participation in Child Health

The objective of the study is to investigate the impact of female labor force participation on child (under 5-years of age) health in Pakistan. Child health was gauged through child immunization coverage status measured by recording receipt of 22 doses of eight basic vaccines. A micro data set (i.e., 5872 children) from Pakistan Demographic Health Survey (PDHS) 2017-2018 was utilized for the study. As per recommendations of the World Health Organization, if a child had received all the 22 doses of those eight important vaccinations, he/she was assumed as highly immunized, and vice versa. The impact of mothers’ employment and other explanatory variables, on child health, was investigated using Ordered logistic regression. The child with higher birth order (OR = 0.927; p-value = 0.000), the child of not-working mother (OR = 0.829; p-value = 0.012), the child of illiterate mothers (OR = 0.606; p-value = 0.000), the child of the mother having no own mobile phone (OR = 0.793; p-value = 0.000), and the child belonged to the poorest family (OR = 0.535; p-value = 0.000) had less likelihood of immunization coverage. Mother’s age (OR = 1.055; p-value = 0.005), number of ANC visits made by the mother (OR = 0.925; p-value = 0.000), and male gender of the child (OR = 1.086; p-value = 0.082) had more probabilities for child immunization coverage. Hence, there is a need to alleviate poverty and gender discrimination as well as to create opportunities to increase female education, awareness, and labor force participation for better outcomes relating to child health.

Factors Affecting Labor Productivity: An Empirical Evidence from Pakistan

Labor productivity is important as it is the major factor determining nations' living standards. This study analyzes the factors affecting labor productivity in Pakistan using time series data. ARDL model is applied for estimation of the long run relationship of variables for the period 1981-2018. Data have been taken from the Handbook of Statistics of State Bank of Pakistan and various economic surveys of Pakistan. The findings show that wages, human capital investment, labor force participation, and inflation significantly affect labor productivity. The results indicate that wage rate has a positive effect on labor productivity, and human capital investment also is positively related to labor productivity. At the same time, labor force participation and inflation are negatively related to labor productivity. These findings imply that labor productivity can be raised by increasing the wage rate and investing more in human capital. Results are consistent with efficiency wage theory and human capital theory.

Missing Men? Precarity and Declining Labor Force Participation Among Working-Class Men

Recent research has noted declining labor force participation among working class men in the United States, but with little attention to the mechanisms underlying such withdrawal. In this article—drawing on in-depth interviews with 61 working-class men from rural Pennsylvania—I address this gap in the literature by prodding respondents on the sequential character of their employment experiences, their perceived vulnerabilities, and the calculations they make in the contexts in which they live. Findings reveal fluctuations in their engagement with work, something I refer to as participation churn. However, respondents’ labor force narratives also show how they adapt to local employment conditions and personal circumstances, a phenomenon referred to as adaptive nonparticipation. The results highlight key mechanisms underlying labor force dropout and have implications for how declining labor force participation should be understood. These findings advance the sociological understanding of how workers—even in precarious positions—assert agency.