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Working during COVID-19: Cross-country evidence from real-time survey data

Author

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  • Vincenzo Galasso

    (Sciences Po, Paris)

  • Martial Foucault

    (Bocconi University)

Abstract

The outbreak of COVID-19 and the unprecedented measures taken by many countries to slow down the spread of the coronavirus caused large economic and psychological costs. This paper uses real time survey data from two waves run at the end of March and in mid-April to provide a snapshot of the actual labour market outcomes in twelve countries. Our study reveals large cross-country differences. At the end of March, when large disparity existed in the diffusion of the pandemic and in the lockdown measures, a large share of employed individuals had stopped working in France (38%) and Italy (47%), but much less in Australia (13%) and the US (10%). Large differences remained in mid-April. Yet, some common patterns emerge. Labour market outcomes varied according to workers’ educational attainments and occupation types. College graduates and white collars worked more from home and less from the regular workplace. Instead, low educated workers and blue collars were more likely to remain in the regular work place or to stop working. Similar patterns emerge with respect to the workers’ (family) income. This evidence suggests that initial labour market effects of COVID-19 (and of the lockdown measures) may have contributed to increase pre-existing inequalities.

Suggested Citation

  • Vincenzo Galasso & Martial Foucault, 2020. "Working during COVID-19: Cross-country evidence from real-time survey data," OECD Social, Employment and Migration Working Papers 246, OECD Publishing.
    • Handle: RePEc:oec:elsaab:246-en
    DOI: 10.1787/34a2c306-en
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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 consequences > Employment and Work

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    Cited by:

    1. Boeri, Tito & Basso, Gaetano & Caiumi, Alessandro & Paccagnella, Marco, 2020. "The new hazardous jobs and worker reallocation," CEPR Discussion Papers 15100, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    2. Cugno, Monica & Castagnoli, Rebecca & Büchi, Giacomo & Pini, Marco, 2022. "Industry 4.0 and production recovery in the covid era," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 114(C).
    3. Aysit Tansel, 2022. "Job Satisfaction, Structure of Working Environment and Firm Size," ERC Working Papers 2202, ERC - Economic Research Center, Middle East Technical University, revised Jun 2022.
    4. Elisa Brini & Mariya Lenko & Stefani Scherer & Agnese Vitali, 2021. "Retraditionalisation? Work patterns of families with children during the pandemic in Italy," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 45(31), pages 957-972.
    5. Bello, Piera & Rocco, Lorenzo, 2022. "Education and COVID-19 excess mortality," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 47(C).
    6. Gavoille, Nicolas & Hazans, Mihails, 2022. "Personality traits, remote work and productivity," GLO Discussion Paper Series 1145, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    7. Paul Lehmann & Silke Beck & Mariana Madruga de Brito & Erik Gawel & Matthias Groß & Annegret Haase & Robert Lepenies & Danny Otto & Johannes Schiller & Sebastian Strunz & Daniela Thrän, 2021. "Environmental Sustainability Post-COVID-19: Scrutinizing Popular Hypotheses from a Social Science Perspective," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(16), pages 1-21, August.
    8. Jun Hyung Kim & Yu Kyung Koh & Jinseong Park, 2023. "Mental Health Consequences of Working from Home during the Pandemic," Global Economic Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 52(1), pages 18-50, January.
    9. Blázquez, Maite & Herrarte, Ainhoa & Moro-Egido, Ana I., 2024. "Has the COVID-19 pandemic widened the gender gap in paid work hours in Spain?," Journal of Demographic Economics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 90(2), pages 313-348, June.
    10. Sara Flisi & Giulia Santangelo, 2022. "Occupations in the European Labour Market During the COVID-19 Pandemic," Intereconomics: Review of European Economic Policy, Springer;ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics;Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS), vol. 57(2), pages 120-126, March.
    11. Dang, Hai-Anh H. & Viet Nguyen, Cuong, 2021. "Gender inequality during the COVID-19 pandemic: Income, expenditure, savings, and job loss," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 140(C).
    12. Asmussen, Katherine E. & Mondal, Aupal & Batur, Irfan & Dirks, Abbie & Pendyala, Ram M. & Bhat, Chandra R., 2024. "An investigation of individual-level telework arrangements in the COVID-era," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 179(C).
    13. Dutta, Nabamita & Kar, Saibal, 2022. "Lockdown and Rural Joblessness in India: Gender Inequality in Employment?," IZA Discussion Papers 15270, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • J21 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Labor Force and Employment, Size, and Structure
    • I30 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - General

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