Abstract
Background
Hazardous employment conditions influence workers’ mental health. This makes Ecuador labour market especially important to study given the pervasiveness of informal employment, that is, unregulated and unprotected work. Yet, evidence on its association with mental health remains limited.
Objectives
To assess the association between informal employment and depressive symptoms among non-agricultural workers in Ecuador.
Methods
Data from 28,096 non-agricultural workers in the most recent Ecuadorian Living Conditions Survey (2013/14). Four employment profiles were derived by cross‑classifying dependency status (dependent vs. independent employment) with employment formality (formal vs. informal). Depressive symptoms were measured using the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (cut-off≥20). Adjusted prevalence ratios (aPR) and 95% confidence intervals of the association between employment profiles and depressive symptoms were estimated using Poisson regression with robust variance. Models were stratified by sex, then by sex and occupation (manual vs non-manual) and adjusted for age, education, area of residence, and ethnicity. We also compared genders across employment profiles.
Results
Depressive symptoms were more prevalent in dependent and independent informal jobs than in dependent formal jobs (for men: aPR=1.24; 95%CI: 1.09–1.40 and aPR=1.21; 95%CI: 1.06–1.38; and for women: aPR=1.35; 95%CI: 1.19–1.52 and aPR=1.29; 95%CI: 1.14–1.47). Compared to dependent formal men, all other employment profiles had higher prevalence, particularly women (aPR=2.16; 95%CI: 1.94–2.40 for dependent and aPR=2.0; 95%CI: 1.85–2.31 for independent informal employment).
Conclusions
In Ecuador, informal employment presents a high prevalence of depressive symptoms, particularly in women. Addressing the vulnerabilities of informal employment through stronger legal and social protection and expanded pathways into formal employment should be key policy priorities.
Key messages
• Informal employment in Ecuador is linked to a high prevalence of depressive symptoms, with women in informal jobs experiencing the greatest burden.
• Gender-sensitive research and policies and stronger labour and health surveillance are needed to reduce mental health inequalities linked to informal employment.