Labor Market Impact of Lockdown Measures and Coping Strategies of the Vulnerable People

Abstract

This study investigated the impact of lockdown measures, resulting from COVID-19 pandemic, on lives and livelihoods of low-income people engaged in multifarious informal works, including agriculture. It used convenience sampling to collect data from the study respondents. Based on descriptive statistics and bivariate analyses, it examined pre and during-lockdown differences in earnings, expenditures, and working hours. Among other results, the study found 66 to 78 percent fall in income for the low-income individuals during the lockdown period compared with the pre-lockdown normal time. The participants heavily relied on past savings, borrowing from formal and informal sources, selling properties, and rationing consumption to cope with the hard times. Those receiving income from sources other than the main profession and from livestock were found better in terms of coping compared with individuals depending on just one work.