Income inequality during the Covid-19 pandemic

"The negative economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic has received much attention, but less is known about its distributional consequences. This column presents new evidence on the pandemic’s inequality effects in Sweden using data on earnings and individual take-up of government Covid-19 support. The results show that income inequality increased during the pandemic, mostly due to layoffs and fewer working hours among low-income, part-time employees. The government’s support policies significantly dampened the increase in inequality increase but did not reverse it."