Who Takes the Hit? Gender Differences in Employment Outcomes After Disasters
Publisher: Pacific Economic Review
Author(s): Po Yin Wong
Date: 2022
Topics: Climate Change, Disasters, Gender
Countries: Indonesia
We estimate the individual labor market outcomes in Indonesia using historical data to isolate the plausibly exogenous variation in local labor market conditions due to unexpected natural hazards. We find that men substitute labor away when there are more unanticipated disasters while women work more. These gender differences in employment elasticities are heterogeneous by land ownership and education. Results imply that policies targeting women, including more flexible workplace arrangements and incentives to finishing secondary school, may be necessary to allow women to substitute away from work when the gains from participation are low.