13.461 jobs in the domestic sector were lost due to the pandemic

The Ministry of Labor registered 4.656 settlement records between March and July.

With the pandemic, the lack of employment worsened and the domestic sector was no exception. A total of 13.461 jobs were lost.

According to the Ecuadorian Social Security Institute (IESS), last March, 92.624 affiliates dedicated to these tasks were registered.

In July, that figure dropped to 79.163. This means that 13.461 people in this sector stopped contributing to social security.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Labor registered 4.656 settlement records between March and July. This is almost double those reported in the same months of 2019, which were 2.379.

For Alexandra Moncada, director of the Care Foundation, these data do not reflect a complete reality. The number of domestic workers who lost their jobs is higher, but it is difficult to have a more precise figure because domestic work in the country is still carried out informally, without contracts and without affiliation to the social security system.

The Care Foundation, which works closely with women who do housework, estimates that six out of 10 workers were affiliated with social security.

The Foundation, the Social Observatory of Ecuador and the National Union of Remunerated Household and Related Workers (Untha) conducted qualitative interviews with workers in six cities last May.

Of the 48 interviewed by the organization, 40 were unemployed and only three were paid a settlement.

Others, on the other hand, had their wages reduced, despite continuing to work eight hours or more.