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The financial position of the workers most affected by the pandemic: an analysis drawing on the Spanish Survey of Household Finances

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  • Pilar Alvargonzález
  • Myroslav Pidkuyko
  • Ernesto Villanueva

Abstract

In the European economies, employment in the retail sector, in accommodation and food services and in the arts and recreation activities has been hit especially hard by the pandemic, so it is important to ascertain the financial resources that the individuals working in these sectors have available to withstand a possible fall in their income. This article draws on the Banco de España’s Survey of Household Finances (EFF, by its Spanish abbreviation) to characterise the financial position of the workers most affected by the present crisis. In 2017, these sectors employed approximately half of all women and the under-35s, two population groups with relatively lower labour income levels. In many cases, these workers lived in households that included higher income earners, which may partially mitigate the incidence of possible job losses. Even so, in 2017, 28% of those employed in the sectors affected lived in households whose financial assets amounted to less than one month’s income, and one in 12 lived in households for which debt repayments amounted to more than 40% of their pre-tax income. Among the workers in the sectors most affected by the pandemic, the financial position of those who were less able to work from home and those employed in the accommodation and food services and arts and recreation sectors was relatively more vulnerable.

Suggested Citation

  • Pilar Alvargonzález & Myroslav Pidkuyko & Ernesto Villanueva, 2020. "The financial position of the workers most affected by the pandemic: an analysis drawing on the Spanish Survey of Household Finances," Economic Bulletin, Banco de España, issue 3/2020.
  • Handle: RePEc:bde:journl:y:2020:i:09:d:aa:n:23
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Simon Mongey & Laura Pilossoph & Alex Weinberg, 2020. "Which Workers Bear the Burden of Social Distancing Policies?," Working Papers 2020-51, Becker Friedman Institute for Research In Economics.
    2. Dingel, Jonathan I. & Neiman, Brent, 2020. "How many jobs can be done at home?," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 189(C).
    3. Adams-Prassl, Abi & Boneva, Teodora & Golin, Marta & Rauh, Christopher, 2020. "Inequality in the impact of the coronavirus shock: Evidence from real time surveys," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 189(C).
    4. Warn N. Lekfuangfu & Suphanit Piyapromdee & Ponpoje Porapakkarm & Nada Wasi, 2020. "On Covid-19: New Implications of Job Task Requirements and Spouse's Occupational Sorting," RF Berlin - CReAM Discussion Paper Series 2012, Rockwool Foundation Berlin (RF Berlin) - Centre for Research and Analysis of Migration (CReAM).
    5. Simon Mongey & Laura Pilossoph & Alexander Weinberg, 2021. "Which workers bear the burden of social distancing?," The Journal of Economic Inequality, Springer;Society for the Study of Economic Inequality, vol. 19(3), pages 509-526, September.
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    RePEc Biblio mentions

    As found on the RePEc Biblio, the curated bibliography for Economics:
    1. > Economics of Welfare > Health Economics > Economics of Pandemics > Specific pandemics > Covid-19 > Economic policy > Household support

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    Cited by:

    1. Jaime Pinilla & Patricia Barber & Laura Vallejo-Torres & Silvia Rodríguez-Mireles & Beatriz G. López-Valcárcel & Luis Serra-Majem, 2021. "The Economic Impact of the SARS-COV-2 (COVID-19) Pandemic in Spain," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(9), pages 1-13, April.
    2. Piluca Alvargonzález & Marina Gómez & Carmen Martínez-Carrascal & Myroslav Pidkuyko & Ernesto Villanueva, 2022. "Analysis of labor flows and consumption in Spain during COVID-19," Occasional Papers 2202, Banco de España.
    3. Brand, Claus & Obstbaum, Meri & Coenen, Günter & Sondermann, David & Lydon, Reamonn & Ajevskis, Viktors & Hammermann, Felix & Angino, Siria & Hernborg, Nils & Basso, Henrique & Hertweck, Matthias & Bi, 2021. "Employment and the conduct of monetary policy in the euro area," Occasional Paper Series 275, European Central Bank.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    COVID-19; inequality; individual and household income; teleworking; household finance.;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • E21 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Consumption; Saving; Wealth
    • G51 - Financial Economics - - Household Finance - - - Household Savings, Borrowing, Debt, and Wealth
    • J21 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Labor Force and Employment, Size, and Structure

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