Sex Ratios and Women's Employment: How Spain and Portugal Diverged

We document that the rise in Portugal's female labor force participation (FLFP) observed in the 1960s was driven neither by changes in social norms nor by a policy to promote the increase in the educational achievement of... [ view full abstract ]

We document that the rise in Portugal's female labor force participation (FLFP) observed in the 1960s was driven neither by changes in social norms nor by a policy to promote the increase in the educational achievement of women. Instead, we argue that it was in large part, demand driven: it took place under a fiercely conservative government and society that restricted women's role to the household sphere, as demonstrated by its policies on education, voting rights, marriage and divorce, abortion, employment, and emigration. The challenge we undertake is thus to explain the defeat of the established ideology and social norms prevailing in Portugal from 1926 to 1974, as female participation increased sharply, out of the Southern European canons. We contrast Portugal to a counterfactual economy, Spain. We combine micro census data from Portugal, Spain, and France, starting in late 1960s, with historical birth statistics by region and gender in Spain and Portugal, as well as individual-level information on Portuguese fatal war casualties in Africa from 1961 to 1974. Our preliminary results based on two different IV strategies suggest that the female labor-demand shocks experienced by Portugal following the war in Africa had a significant impact on women's FLFP.