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<p>The COVID-19 pandemic has not only led to a health crisis, but also to economic and labor market crises. In an effort to avert the public health threat, countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) initially put in place some of the world's most stringent government responses. This paper explores how labor market outcomes for MENA workers have evolved during the COVID-19 pandemic. The paper uses the Economic Research Forum (ERF) COVID-19 MENA Monitor (CMM) phone surveys in Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, Sudan, and Tunisia, with waves spanning November 2020 to August 2021. Analyses examine outcomes of employment, unemployment, and labor force participation, along with hours of work and hourly wages. Results show differences in the evolution of pandemic-era labor markets by workers’ gender, age, and education, along with their February 2020 labor market status and industry, as well as their pre-pandemic income. Employment rates have largely recovered and hours of work generally increased. Inequality in wages was initially exacerbated by the pandemic, but there has been at least some recovery on this margin as well.</p>
</abstract>

The COVID-19 pandemic has not only led to a health crisis, but also to economic and labor market crises. In an effort to avert the public health threat, countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) initially put in place some of the world's most stringent government responses. This paper explores how labor market outcomes for MENA workers have evolved during the COVID-19 pandemic. The paper uses the Economic Research Forum (ERF) COVID-19 MENA Monitor (CMM) phone surveys in Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, Sudan, and Tunisia, with waves spanning November 2020 to August 2021. Analyses examine outcomes of employment, unemployment, and labor force participation, along with hours of work and hourly wages. Results show differences in the evolution of pandemic-era labor markets by workers’ gender, age, and education, along with their February 2020 labor market status and industry, as well as their pre-pandemic income. Employment rates have largely recovered and hours of work generally increased. Inequality in wages was initially exacerbated by the pandemic, but there has been at least some recovery on this margin as well.

Are labor markets in the Middle East and North Africa recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic?

Department of Economics and Political Science

IRD and Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne University

IZA Journal of Development and Migration

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

The COVID-19 pandemic has not only led to a health crisis, but also to economic and labor market crises. In an effort to avert the public health threat,...

Are labor markets in the Middle East and North Africa recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic?

Published Online: Sep 25, 2023

Page range: -

Received: Aug 20, 2022

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/izajodm-2023-0001

Keywords
labor market, wages, hours, employment, unemployment, labor force, COVID-19, Middle East and North Africa

© 2023 Caroline Krafft et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Are labor markets in the Middle East and North Africa recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic?

Published Online: Sep 25, 2023

Page range: -

Received: Aug 20, 2022

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/izajodm-2023-0001

Keywordslabor market, wages, hours, employment, unemployment, labor force, COVID-19, Middle East and North Africa

© 2023 Caroline Krafft et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Keywords
labor market, wages, hours, employment, unemployment, labor force, COVID-19, Middle East and North Africa