Macroeconomics

Labour economics

Closing (real estate)

Convergence (economics)

Economics

Neoclassical economics

Keynesian economics

Recession

Demographic economics

Unemployment

Gender gap

Great recession

Finance

Unemployment rate

Review of Economic Dynamics

The gender unemployment gap, the difference between female and male unemployment rates, was positive until the early 1980s. This gap disappeared after 1983, except during recessions, when men's unemployment rate has always exceeded women's. Using a calibrated three-state search model, we show that the convergence in female and male labor force attachment accounts for most of the closing of the gender unemployment gap. Evidence from nineteen OECD countries is consistent with this finding. We show that gender differences in industry composition are the main source of the cyclicality of the unemployment gap.

The gender unemployment gap