More employment, but fewer women
The economic recovery is being reflected in higher employment rates, but at the cost of jobs for women
Women have never had it easy in the labour market. Historically, unemployment among women has always been higher than for men, but during the crisis, especially at the beginning, this trend was reverse as job losses mainly affected sectors with greater presence of men, such as construction.
At the end off 2007, before the impact of the crisis in the labour market was felt, the unemployment rate for women in Catalonia was 7.68% for men and 5.60% for women, but in early 2010, men exceeded women by three percent (19.12% against 16.38%).
This abnormality has remained more or less constant throughout the crisis, but last year things began to change and the data from the employment register (EPA) show fewer women gaining employment. The difference is startling. Union UGT reports 9,044 new contracts signed in Catalonia in July, with only 1,611 corresponding to female workers.
UGT claims the data shows that companies are taking advantage of the context of high unemployment (around 16%) to discriminate against women as they have more difficulty reconciling family life than men who are more adaptable, a priority for businesses which want to change the schedule from one day to the other.
For Professor of Economics Group AQR-IREA, University of Barcelona, Raul Ramos, it is clear that the improving economic situation and more jobs “means there is more competition for these places of work because we have many people available.” Employers have more choice. Even with educational equality, men tend to have more work experience, so women lose out.
What is clear is that indicators show the situation is unlikely to change in the short term.