A new study based on the 2024 CASEN survey highlights how poverty, caregiving, and informality deepen labor gaps for women in Chile's lowest income quintile. Experts at a Red Activa forum analyzed data showing 27% female unemployment, high informality, and disproportionate care burdens. They proposed nurseries, flexibility, and formalization as key solutions.
At a Red Activa event hosted by La Tercera TV, experts presented the 'Zoom de Género Especial CASEN Pobreza' report, produced by ChileMujeres, OCEC UDP, and the Santiago Chamber of Commerce using 2024 CASEN survey data.
Juan Bravo, OCEC UDP director, noted female labor participation rises with household income, but gender gaps widen in poorer quintiles. "In the lowest quintile, 15.3% of women are out of the labor force due to caregiving, versus 2% in the highest," he said. There, female unemployment hits 27%, 60.4% work informally, and 53.6% part-time at 30 hours weekly.
Francisca Jünemann, ChileMujeres executive president, contrasted: "High-quintile women near 80% participation with low unemployment, but in the first quintile, under 30% have paid work." Osvaldo Larrañaga, from the 2024 Poverty Measurement Expert Commission, linked poverty to employment: the new method raised the figure to 3.5 million people in poverty, nearly two million women, fixing prior overestimations.
María Teresa Vial, Santiago Chamber of Commerce president, stressed informality in commerce and the value of formal first jobs. On education, Bravo and Larrañaga warned of poor quality despite coverage, with nearly 50% functional illiteracy.
Panelists called for universal nurseries, work flexibility, and bureaucracy cuts to formalize jobs. Jünemann noted 1,500 children waiting for public nurseries, hindering hiring of poor women. Amid economic slowdown, they see potential in activating 1.4 million inactive women.
