Women lost jobs at a faster rate than men in the wake of Covid-19 economic hardships, deepening gender inequality in corporate Kenya workplace.
Data released last week by the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) show that women accounted for 115,409 or 61.9 percent of the 186,402 jobs that were lost in 2020.
The drop reflects that women were vulnerable to the significant business disruptions that followed the coronavirus disruptions, which triggered losses and closure of firms after the State imposed restrictions to curb the pandemic.
The layoffs entrenched the gender imbalance at the workplace in corporate Kenya with the share of women workers dropping to 36.8 percent in 2020 compared to 38.4 percent a year earlier.
Experts reckon that reduced economic activity due to the pandemic affected deeply sectors that are female dominated such as hospitality and retail.
Others say the women have always been a target of job cuts in a business setting when males influence decision making in the C-suite.