The Effects of Coronavirus Pandemic on the Iranian Labor Market

Taherpoor, Javad; Rajabi, Fateme; Mirzaei, Hojjatollah; Soheili, Habib

doi:10.22054/joer.2022.54776.898

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

¹ Associate Professor, Faculty of Economics, Allameh Tabataba’i University, Tehran, Iran

² Ph.D. in Economics, Allameh Tabataba’i University, Tehran, Iran

³ Assistant Professor, Faculty of Economics, Allameh Tabataba’i University, Tehran, Iran

⁴ Assistant Professor, Faculty of Economics, Kharazmi University, Tehran, Iran

https://doi.org/10.22054/joer.2022.54776.898

Abstract

The aim of this study is to investigate the impacts of the coronavirus outbreak on Iran’s labor market. To do so, we analyzed changes in key indicators of the labor market in the first four months of the outbreak. In addition, the dynamic effects of COVID-19 are estimated using a vector autoregression model (VAR). Results show that spread of the pandemic has led to an increase innumber of discouraged workers. The participation rate has fallen by 3.7 percentage points, compared to the same period last year. Considering seasonal variations in the labor market, nearly 1.5 million people have lost their jobs due to the coronavirus contagion. Also, around 750 thousand people applied for unemployment benefits which are 60 percent of the claims filed by former service sector employees. The results indicate that during the study period, the increase in confirmed cases of infections increased the number of jobless claims and the number of unemployed persons. Our findings confirm rapid and substantial changes in the Iranian labor market caused by the coronavirus and highlight the necessity of improving the social welfare system for supporting vulnerable groups in the current crisis and future crises. Supporting businesses, especially credit, insurance, etc., can also reduce the problems of businesses and reduce the number of unemployed.

Keywords

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Economics Research

The Effects of Coronavirus Pandemic on the Iranian Labor Market

References

References

Volume 21, Issue 81 - Serial Number 2
July 2021
Pages 155-196

The Effects of Coronavirus Pandemic on the Iranian Labor Market

References

References

Volume 21, Issue 81 - Serial Number 2July 2021Pages 155-196

Volume 21, Issue 81 - Serial Number 2
July 2021
Pages 155-196