Gendered impacts of COVID-19 on the garment sector

This brief, co-authored by the ILO and Better Work, aims to raise awareness of the gendered reality of COVID-19 and to outline some of the ways in which the pandemic impacts women and men workers in the garment sector in the short, medium and long terms.

Given that women account for approximately 80 per cent of the garment sector workforce, many of the sectoral impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic have and will continue to disproportionately affect women.

This brief raises awareness of the gendered reality of COVID-19 and outlines some of the ways in which the pandemic impacts women and men workers in the garment sector in the short, medium and long-terms. Ultimately dedicated gender-responsive measures and policies should be designed and implemented based on the needs and realities of different groups of women, of men and of others. Otherwise, the COVID-19 pandemic threatens to exacerbate pre-existing inequalities, undermine women’s empowerment and hamper the social and economic sustainability of the garment sector over the short, medium and long terms.