Zika virus public health crisis and the perpetuation of gender inequality in Brazil.

Background: In 2015-2017, the Americas experienced a highly consequential epidemics for pregnancy and childbearing. Mainly transmitted by the mosquito Aedes aegypti, but also through sexual intercourse, the Zika virus poses the risk of congenital Zika syndrome to fetus, which includes microcephaly and other child development complications. When a public health crisis taps directly into reproductive health, typically a feminine realm, responses to the emergency may exacerbate deeply-rooted gender norms.

Motherhood Wage Penalties in Latin America: The Significance of Labor Informality.

revious research has established the presence of a motherhood wage penalty in many developed societies; however, whether mothers face similar disadvantages in developing countries remains underexplored. This article argues that different intervening factors emerge when considering mothers' labor compensation in developing contexts. Labor informality, a key characteristic of labor markets in developing countries, could play a significant role in shaping the wage consequence of motherhood.

The Educational Consequences of Adolescent Childbearing and Union Formation in Brazil.

While Brazil has high rates of adolescent fertility for its below-replacement total fertility rate, we know little about the causal effects of adolescent childbearing and adolescent union formation for women's education. In this paper, we examine unique data from the 2013 School-to-Work Transitions Survey to address the consequences of adolescent childbearing and adolescent union formation on educational outcomes of Brazilian young women. We apply several analytical strategies to address the endogeneity between adolescent childbearing and educational outcomes.