Only 22% of the women surveyed hold a supervisory position

This is according to the results of the study on the needs of working women, in which 13,283 people participated.

San Juan, Puerto Rico. December 6, 2023 - The Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics and the Office of the Women's Attorney presented the results of the study on the Needs of Working Women, a collaboration that involved the participation of 13,283 people surveyed. This joint effort aimed at identifying the needs and challenges of working women, basing the conclusions on empirical evidence and thus providing a basis for identifying possible solutions to the different situations faced by working women in Puerto Rico.

Under the slogan “We are all working women”, the electronic questionnaire was aimed at working women in different sectors, including the public and private sectors, housewives, caregivers, businesswomen and those who work independently. Participation was voluntary and anonymous. The topics addressed in the survey included the work situation, work environment, breastfeeding, motherhood, household structure and needs, quality of life, physical and emotional health.

From the results of the study, which is available by accessing https://estadisticas.pr/en/Necesidades-Mujer the following are highlighted:

Employment status:

• 95% of the women workers surveyed had one or more jobs.
• 38% worked in an agency or branch of government.
• 22% held supervisory positions.
• 44% indicated that they had not received guidance on the Affirmative Action Plan, followed by 36% who were not sure.

Breastfeeding:

• 47% indicated that their place of employment does not have a nursing room.
• 64% of the women who used the nursing room, provided by the employer, considered that the time offered was not adequate.

Maternity:

• 72% of the pregnant women surveyed indicated that the employer always provided them with flexibility to attend medical appointments and treat symptoms during pregnancy.

Structures and needs of the house and home:

• 47% of working women indicated that they were the legitimate owner and were still paying their mortgage on their homes.
• 57% had 1 to 2 sons or daughters.

Need for a caregiver:

• 1 in 3 (34%) expressed a need for a caregiver for their children, dependents or family members.

Quality of life, physical and emotional health:

• The majority indicated that they had a good level of emotional and physical health.
• 63% experience or have experienced a “double working day”.
• 51% indicated that painful menstruation disables them 1 to 2 days a month.

Gender-based violence:

• 34% reported having been a victim of workplace harassment.
• 24 percent reported having been a victim of domestic violence.
• 1 in 4 (24%) experienced gender discrimination.

Socio-demographic characteristics:

• Forty-six percent were 50 years of age or older.
• 73% had reached an academic level of baccalaureate and/or master's degree.
• 70% had a household income equal to or less than $41,500 per year.

“I am grateful to the thousands of women who participated in this important study. Its detailed input will allow us to take action and create initiatives aimed at companies and employers so that they can improve and reinforce the areas of greatest need. In our office, we continue to be in the best position to help women and ensure that their rights are fulfilled in the personal and work environment,” said the acting attorney, Madeline Bermudez.

“The data collected in this study are essential to help us understand the realities that women face in the workplace. Statistical objectivity is essential for the progress of our society, and these data are a valuable tool for evidence-based decision-making. This information could help to effectively understand the specific needs of working women, thus contributing to the construction of more equitable and just working environments,” said Dr. Orville M. Disdier Flores, Executive Director of the Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics.

‍

Author: Alejandro López Flores and Ronald G. Hernández Maldonado

Date: November 6, 2025

‍

Poverty must be contextualized with social variables to understand and address it effectively. The Backwardness Index for Puerto Rico is an indicator composed of five variables that comprise two dimensions: Economic Mobility and Demography. This index seeks to measure poverty beyond income thresholds, and to incorporate elements of social backwardness and relative deprivation. An exploratory factor analysis was carried out on a set of variables to validate the construction of the multidimensional deprivation model, and to retain the variables that best captured the phenomenon of deprivation. Then, the retained variables were normalized using thresholds. The thresholds were obtained with data from the Puerto Rico Community Survey (ECPR or PRCS in English) and the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS in English). The scores of the different variables were aggregated by dimension, using the arithmetic mean, and the scores resulting from the dimensions were aggregated using the geometric mean. The values of the index lie between 0 and 1 where, the higher the score, the worse the result of the phenomenon.42 municipalities showed a decrease in their index score between the periods compared. Of these 42 municipalities, 22 showed a decrease in their score greater than 5%. Likewise, there are concentrations of municipalities with high Lagging Index scores in the central-southwest and southeastern areas of Puerto Rico.

‍

JUSTICE STUDY AND THE INSTITUTE OF STATISTICS REVEALS:

ONE OF FOUR DOMESTIC VIOLENCE PLAINTIFFS FACES A RISK OF DEATH

Based on the findings of the pilot study of the Risk Assessment used by Department of Justice prosecutors analyzed by the Institute for Statistics

San Juan, Puerto Rico. Wednesday, December 11, 2024 -- The Puerto Rico Statistics Institute and the Puerto Rico Department of Justice presented the preliminary findings of the analysis of the Risk Assessment, a tool recently implemented by prosecutors in the criminal investigation process, to identify the levels of dangerousness of femicide faced by victims of domestic violence in Puerto Rico. The pilot study, which covered 2,021 cases during the first half of 2024, revealed worrying data that highlight the urgency of continuing to strengthen prevention and protection strategies against domestic violence in Puerto Rico.

Among the data, the following stand out:

• The injured parties have an average age of 36.3 years, with the group from 20 to 39 years old being the most represented (62.1% of cases).
• One in four victims faced a level of danger from severe to extreme.
  • Women with severe or extreme danger are almost 13 times more likely to have been attacked or threatened with a weapon, compared to those who are of varying or increasing danger.
  • When evaluating the group of women with severe or extreme dangerousness, it was due to the fact that the partner or former partner was jealous of them and shows it violently and constantly (82.6%). 79.1% fear that their partner or ex-partner is capable of killing them.
  • The municipalities with the highest adjusted rates of victims, aged 15 and over with severe or extreme danger, were Barranquitas, Salinas and Patillas.

The Puerto Rico Statistics Institute and the Puerto Rico Department of Justice reaffirmed their commitment to continue working together so that the Government of Puerto Rico uses these findings as a basis for the design and implementation of effective public policies that prioritize the safety of victims of domestic violence.

“These data not only represent a picture of reality, but they are the result of a rigorous statistical analysis process led by the Institute of Statistics, in which the risk assessment sheets were validated, integrated into a centralized database and the necessary analyses were carried out to identify the most critical risk factors. This work is a key tool to guide government agencies' efforts toward more effective and targeted interventions,” said Dr. Orville M. Disdier Flores, executive director of the Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics. For his part, the Secretary of Justice, Domingo Emanuelli Hernández, pointed out that “these data are not just numbers, they are an urgent call for joint action to reinforce prevention, protection and justice strategies for victims of domestic violence. This preliminary report provides us with a path of action to identify areas that need to be reinforced in the fight to eradicate domestic violence. The analysis of data from the Department of Justice's Risk Assessment will allow the development of public policies and measures in addition to those that have already been implemented to meet the needs of the complainants and prevent femicide. My commitment, as part of the justice system, is to work tirelessly to turn these statistics into tangible solutions that prioritize the safety, dignity and rights of victims. It is extremely important that it be continued, as it is an effective initiative to continue building a future where no woman fears for her life in her own home.”

On the other hand, Dr. Idania R. Rodríguez Ayuso, Deputy Executive Director of the Institute of Statistics, noted that “The analysis of these data allowed us to identify patterns and critical risk factors that highlight the seriousness of domestic violence in Puerto Rico. This process, which included the validation and detailed analysis of risk assessment sheets, is essential for generating reliable information that serves as a basis for designing more effective prevention and protection strategies. These findings call on us to act urgently to prioritize high-risk cases and ensure the safety of victims.”

“The Risk Assessment analysis allows prosecutors to make determinations with greater certainty and can be inserted into prevention efforts. In turn, it helps them to guide victims and channel the aid and services they require, including security measures,” said the chief prosecutor, Jessika Correa González.

“The results of the Department of Justice's pilot Risk Assessment study confirm an alarming reality that we cannot ignore: one in four female complainants faces a level of danger that puts their lives at risk. As a society, we cannot allow fear and violence to continue to mark the lives of so many women. However, this effort cannot fall solely on government institutions. The active collaboration of communities is essential to identify risks, provide support to victims and promote a culture of respect,” said prosecutor Laura Hernández Gutiérrez, director of the Coordination Division of the Specialized Units for Domestic Violence, Sexual Offences and Child Abuse of the Department of Justice.

The Puerto Rico Statistics Institute and the Puerto Rico Department of Justice reiterated their call to continue government and community collaboration, as well as to continue strengthening the collection and analysis of regional data to eventually eradicate domestic violence in Puerto Rico. For his part, the Secretary of the Department of Justice reported that the results obtained will allow law and order agencies to strengthen the response in municipalities with high rates of danger, thus allowing for more focused and effective interventions. In addition, he explained that it will be essential to continue the specialized training that the Department of Justice implemented to train professionals who work directly with victims of domestic violence, ensuring that they have the necessary tools to identify and manage risky situations appropriately. Finally, the leaders of both agencies said that these findings will make it possible to design better prevention and education campaigns aimed at raising awareness of the risk factors associated with the risk of intimate femicide.

For more information you can visit the website www.estadisticas.pr.gov or the social media accounts of Facebook (@estadisticas .pr), Twitter (@EstadisticasPR) and LinkedIn (Institute of Statistics of Puerto Rico).

To access the study: Risk Assessment Sheet Findings Report.

About the Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics

The Puerto Rico Statistics Institute is an autonomous governmental entity responsible for coordinating the Government's statistical production service to ensure that the data collection and statistics systems, on which public policies are based, are complete, reliable, and have quick and universal access.

About the Puerto Rico Department of Justice

The Department of Justice has the mission of ensuring faithful compliance with the Constitution and laws of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and aspiring to the highest principles of equality and human dignity. It also represents the people of Puerto Rico in civil and criminal cases, and provides certainty to the legal trafficking of real estate on the island. It performs these functions with effectiveness, integrity, a sense of justice and the strongest commitment to public service.

‍