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ABSTRACT
This is the first study that examines the association between sexual orientation and labor force participation in Chile and Uruguay. Using information on heads of households and their partners from recent census data, it applies a simple econometric methodology to measure the relationship of sexual orientation and labor participation, juxtaposing individuals who are part of straight and same-sex couples, while determining any difference in this association according to gender. The study finds that partnered gay men are up to 5.0 percentage points less likely to participate in the workforce compared to married straight men. In addition, lesbians are up to 32.7 percentage points more likely to participate in the labor force compared to married straight women. Trends between the two countries are similar, but the likelihood of participating in the labor force differs significantly. Conservatism in the cultural context and legal frameworks of each country arises as a possible explanation.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
We would like to thank Alice Blukacz for her constructive and valuable comments. We are also thankful for the funding provided by the Centre for Social Conflict and Cohesion Studies, FONDAP No. 15130009.
SUPPLEMENTAL DATA
Supplemental data for this article can be accessed at https://doi.org/10.1080/13545701.2018.1554905.
Notes
1 Leppel (Citation2009) calculates these probabilities by subtracting the probabilities of “not in the labor force” between groups.
2 In Chile, gay men report being verbally insulted (55.8 percent), threatened (26.7 percent), and even sexually (11.5 percent) or physically (16.6 percent) assaulted due to their sexual orientation (Barrientos-Delgado, Cárdenas-Castro, and Gómez-Ojeda Citation2014).
3 This is according to the Global Competitiveness Index (2011/2012), which captures the determinants of long-term growth (Schwab Citation2011). In the 2011/2012 ranking (when the censuses for both countries were administered), Chile was in 31st place and Uruguay was in 63rd. The Economic Freedom of the World index (Gwartney, Lawson, and Hall Citation2011) is designed to measure the degree to which the institutions and policies of countries are consistent with economic freedom. In 2011, Chile was ranked 11th and Uruguay was 43rd. Data to make comparisons were obtained from the World Development Indicators of the World Bank (see Supplemental Online Appendix Table A1).
4 Although divorce was legalized in 1907, unilateral divorce was approved in 1980 (Wanda Cabella Citation1999).
5 Carlos F. Cáceres et al. classify the Chilean legal system as neutral (does not have any legal prohibition of same-sex behavior nor addresses sexual diversity), while they classify the Uruguayan system as protective (“laws include an explicit prohibition of discrimination against sexual diversity, with positive measures such as marriage, civil union, transgender rights recognition” [Citation2009: 8]).
6 Atala Riffo and Daughters v. Chile, Inter-American Court of Human Rights, February 24, 2012, http://corteidh.or.cr/docs/casos/articulos/seriec_239_ing.pdf.
7 Same-sex marriage was legalized in all states in 2013 (Resoluçao No. 175), but the Supreme Court ruled for same-sex marriages in 2011.
8 For more information, see The Economist (Citation2012).
9 Survey design and fieldwork done by the National Institute of Statistics for each country (Instituto Nacional de Estadísticas de Chile Citationn.d.; Instituto Nacional de Estadística Uruguay Citationn.d.).
10 This figure is the sum of people surveyed in private homes (15,621,622) and others (hotels, hostels, nursing homes, and so on; 137,307).
11 This figure is the sum of people surveyed in private homes (3,213,147) and others (hotels, hostels, nursing homes, and so on; 38,507).
12 Individuals are considered children when they are under age 18.
13 This number is made up of 1,465,852 married heterosexual, 563,998 unmarried heterosexual, 3,285 gay male, and 3,645 lesbian couples.
14 This number is made up of 256,846 married heterosexual, 159,832 unmarried heterosexual, 371 gay male, and 589 lesbian couples.
15 One of the reasons we only include participation as a dependent variable is that neither the Chilean census (2012) nor the Uruguayan census (2012) collect information on salaries or is a good proxy of hours worked for pay.
16 The results do not vary considerably and are available upon request.
17 It is worth emphasizing that Leppel’s (Citation2009) results were computed using variables that we do not have for these two countries, such as race, non-wage income, English-speaking ability, occupation, and zone (metropolitan). Also, differences between the groups follow the same pattern as other studies, such as Tebaldi and Elmslie (Citation2006), who find that lesbians are more likely to undertake full-time paid work and gay men are more likely to undertake part-time paid work.
18 Glass ceilings occur when promotion opportunities are limited for the very top ranks (Frank Citation2006).
19 19.5 percent of gay male and lesbian couples have one member out of the workforce, while that percentage is 31.9 percent in the case of straight couples. Within the group of straight couples that have one member out of the workforce, in 78 percent of the cases, the member is the woman (Black, Sanders, and Taylor Citation2007).
20 Antecol and Steinberger (Citation2013) classify lesbians in a relationship by their wages; the primary earner is the one with the higher wage.
21 This difference can also be reflected in women's labor force participation. Although not completely comparable, Leppel (Citation2009) finds a difference of 3.4 percentage points in the probability of participating between married women and lesbians in the US, while that difference accounts for 32.7 percentage points and 13.8 percentage points in Chile and Uruguay, respectively.
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Notes on contributors
Camila Brown
Camila Brown holds a degree in economics from Universidad de Chile. She is currently working for the Labor Studies Department of the Ministry of Labor and Social Security
Dante Contreras
Dante Contreras is Professor in the Department of Economics at Universidad de Chile.
Luis Schmidt
Luis Schmidt holds a BA in economics from Universidad de Chile and a MA in Economics from the University of British Columbia.