7 Out of 10 Women Are Unemployed Due to the Pandemic

March 8, 2021 4 min read

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

In its traditional survey carried out within the framework of International Women’s Day , which is commemorated on March 8, we found that of the total of women surveyed, seven out of 10 are unemployed and in search of work, of which the 67% said it was in the wake of the pandemic.

26% said they have a job, but are looking for new opportunities, 4% have a job and are not looking for other options, 1% are studying at the same time they work and the other 1% are studying and are not looking for a job or simply does not work.

For 32% of women who are looking for a new or better job, they do not have the one they want due to the lack of opportunities in the country ; 25% explain that it is because they made cuts in the company they worked for; 12% consider that it is due to age; 5% because they have not developed the necessary skills and 4% attribute it to their gender. Additionally, 7 out of 10 said their job search has been affected by the pandemic.

Of the women who said they do work, 42% do so from an office or work center; 28% are in a hybrid way (a combination of office and home work); and 30% are doing home office. For this last percentage that is doing telework, 68% said that this modality has been favorable to them; for 25% it has been disadvantageous and for 7% it has been the same as in the office.

In this sense, the respondents, men and women, mentioned that the 10 aspects, whether positive or negative, that have impacted the female gender with the implementation of the home office are:

• Divide their time between work, home and family (46%)
• Supervise children’s education (35%)
• Having more work by being online for longer (32%)
• Difficulty having adequate spaces (31%)
• Have more time by reducing transfers (27%)
• Have a series of distractions at home (24%)
• Generate savings, by spending less than on the street (23%)
• Have new opportunities to work or be employed from home (17%)
• Lack of concentration (14%)
• Register higher spending when being at home (14%)

Men and women suffer the ravages of unemployment as a result of the pandemic

When opening the survey to both genders, 67% of those surveyed considered that both men and women have suffered the ravages of unemployment as a result of the pandemic; 21% say that women have been the most affected; while 12% point out that men are the ones who have suffered the most.

Regarding the main problems that women face in the labor market, 72% said that workplace harassment, 64% mentioned machismo, 55% said that the lack of equality in salary and opportunities, 48% said that the misogyny and 42% problems related to motherhood.

Speaking of inequality, 41% of those surveyed indicated that in the face of COVID-19 the wage and opportunity gap between men and women is the same as before , 25% say it has decreased and 19% said that it has increased.

Finally, 41% of the participants said that job opportunities for women have improved a little in the last 5 years, however there is still work to be done; 38% are more positive in ensuring that they definitely do detect an improvement; 12% answered yes, but stalled as a result of COVID-19; and 7% say that opportunities for women have not improved.

The survey was conducted in February and March 2021 with 1,500 people. 58% are men and 42% are women. 30% are between 30 and 39 years old, another 29% between 40 and 49 years old, 22% are over 50 years old and 19% between 18 and 29 years old. By geographical location, 34% is from Mexico City, 20% from the State of Mexico, 6% from Nuevo León, 5% from Querétaro, 5% from Querétaro and the remaining 30% is divided into the other states of the country.