The Impact of COVID-19 on the Work Conditions of Health Employment. A comparative analysis of labor market statistics: 2008-2020
Abstract
During the pandemic, what has been the evolution of employment in health activities? Have your basic features been altered? are the questions posed in this paper. Five aspects of Spanish healthcare are presented that have been partially altered during the first year of COVID-19: The continuity of the expansion of healthcare employment; A mixed model of private public ownership; A pattern of seasonal elasticity; A dual contracting standard; And a full-time employer.
The evolution of employment in healthcare between 2008 and 2020 is taken into account. And in the face of the idea of the failure of public institutions, it is emphasized that healthcare has shown a remarkable organizational capacity to mobilize available resources and face a health emergency of huge proportions.
Spain in 2020, compared to Europe (27 countries of the European Union since 2020), measured by the number of health professionals per 1,000 inhabitants, has a small health system that has grown very fast. During COVID-19, the weight of the public sector has increased, a dual healthcare model has been accentuated, in which almost half of the employment has a temporary contract, and part-time hiring has been reduced. It should be noted that, in response to the pandemic, the seasonal elasticity pattern of healthcare employment, which expanded between July and August to immediately contract in October and November, has been significantly altered, and between March and December 2020, the increase has been almost constant.
In order to analyze the evolution of employment in health activities and provide a comparative view, as well as to present its employment characteristics, and especially to assess the evolution of employment during the COVID-19 pandemic, this paper uses the quarterly series of the Labor Force Survey (in Spanish EPA) published in EUROSTAT and the monthly series of Social Security affiliation statistics.
Downloads
Article download
Crossmark
License
In order to support the global exchange of knowledge, the journal Sociología del Trabajo is allowing unrestricted access to its content as from its publication in this electronic edition, and as such it is an open-access journal. The originals published in this journal are the property of the Complutense University of Madrid and any reproduction thereof in full or in part must cite the source. All content is distributed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 use and distribution licence (CC BY 4.0). This circumstance must be expressly stated in these terms where necessary. You can view the summary and the complete legal text of the licence.
