Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/223778 
Year of Publication: 
2020
Series/Report no.: 
IZA Discussion Papers No. 13336
Publisher: 
Institute of Labor Economics (IZA), Bonn
Abstract: 
We study the gender dimension of occupational exposure to contagious diseases spread by the respiratory or close-contact route. We show that in Europe, women are more exposed to contagion, as they are more likely than men to work in occupations that require contact with diseases, frequent contact with clients, and high levels of physical proximity at work. Women are also more likely than men to be unable to work from home, which contributes to their increased exposure. Gender is a more important factor in workers' exposure to contagion than their education or age. This gender difference in exposure can be largely attributed to patterns of sectoral segregation, and to the segregation of women within sectors into occupations that require more interpersonal interactions. While workers in Southern European countries are the most exposed to contagion, the gender differences in exposure are greatest in the Nordic and Continental European countries.
Subjects: 
COVID-19
contagion
exposure to disease
gender
occupations
working from home
JEL: 
J01
I10
J44
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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