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GLOBALIZATION, WAGES, AND THE QUALITY OF JOBS: FIVE COUNTRY STUDIES
FIGURE 5.7 El Salvador: Unemployment Rate by Gender, 1992–2005 14
unemployment rate (%)
12 10 8 6 4 2
05
04
20
03
02
20
20
01
men
20
00
20
20
99
98
19
97 total
19
19
96
95
19
94 19
19
93 19
19
92
0
women
SOURCE: Ministry of Economy, General Directorate of Statistics and Census.
of food and beverages and garments and textiles. Men, however, participate more in agricultural activities and sales. (See table 5.6.) Remittances do not change the overall pattern of distribution of employment by economic sector. Employment by firm size has a U-shaped distribution, where microenterprises generate 61.2 percent of employment, and large firms 29 percent. In the garment industry the employment share is larger in large firms, which tend to participate more in the regulated, or formal, segment of the labor market. Average Hours per Week
The employed reported working 42.2 hours per week on average in their main job, with little difference between men and women: 42.6 hours compared with 41.7, but with variation across sectors. Women working as maids (with no contractual or legislative protections) had the longest work week. Those receiving remittances worked 40.2 hours per week; those not receiving remittances worked 42.7 hours. Average hours per week increased with firm size, from 39.3 for microenterprise to 47.3 hours for large firms. Generally, microenterprises represent the informal sector, where workers may enjoy more flexible hours, while large firms are subject to legislation offering less flexibility. One of the distinguishing features of labor markets in El Salvador is rigidity in hours worked per week in the regulated segment of the market, determined by labor legislation. Density functions of the distribution of number of hours per week for the employed population in their main job show a concentration around 44 hours per week, which is the number of hours established in the labor code. However, there are differences between