Unleashed: An experiment on releasing untapped labor market potential of women in Indonesia

Women continue to struggle to have strong job market attachment in many countries in the developing world due to challenges in managing the transitions related to major events in their life cycle. Women are more likely than men to exit the labor market or join the labor market for the first time at a later age due to their domestic and caregiving responsibilities. Skill mismatch and substantial information friction to find decent jobs are two important challenges faced by these women when they intend to enter/reenter the labor market. We study interventions to address the skills mismatch and information frictions specifically targeted to this group of women. There will be two treatment arms where in one group, we offer online training vouchers and face-to-face soft skills training, and in another group, we add on job search training and assistance. We will also design the study to allow us to uncover potential mechanisms linking the interventions with the employment outcomes.