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The attachment of adult women to the Italian labour market in the shadow of COVID-19

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  • Davide Fiaschi
  • Cristina Tealdi

Abstract

We investigate the attachment to the labour market of women in their 30s, who are combining career and family choices, through their reactions to an exogenous, and potentially symmetric shock, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. We find that in Italy a large number of females with small children, living in the North, left permanent (and temporary) employment and became inactive in 2020. Despite the short period of observation after the burst of the pandemic, the identified impacts appear large and persistent, particularly with respect to the males of the same age. We argue that this evidence is ascribable to specific regional socio-cultural factors, which foreshadow a potential long-term detrimental impact on female labour force participation.

Suggested Citation

  • Davide Fiaschi & Cristina Tealdi, 2022. "The attachment of adult women to the Italian labour market in the shadow of COVID-19," Papers 2202.13317, arXiv.org, revised May 2023.
    • Handle: RePEc:arx:papers:2202.13317
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    1. Henri Bussink & Tobias Vervliet & Bas Weel, 2022. "The Short-Term Effect of the COVID-19 Crisis on Employment Probabilities of Labour-Market Entrants in the Netherlands," De Economist, Springer, vol. 170(2), pages 279-303, May.
    2. Henri Bussink & Tobias Vervliet & Bas ter Weel, 2022. "The short-term effect of the COVID-19 crisis on employment probabilities of labour-market entrants in the Netherlands," Tinbergen Institute Discussion Papers 22-030/V, Tinbergen Institute.
    3. Bussink, Henri & Vervliet, Tobias & ter Weel, Bas, 2022. "The Short-Term Effect of the COVID-19 Crisis on Employment Probabilities of Labour-Market Entrants in the Netherlands," IZA Discussion Papers 15242, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).

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    JEL classification:

    • E24 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Employment; Unemployment; Wages; Intergenerational Income Distribution; Aggregate Human Capital; Aggregate Labor Productivity
    • J21 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Labor Force and Employment, Size, and Structure
    • J82 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Labor Standards - - - Labor Force Composition

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