Gender gaps in job search and hiring: Evidence from reference verification in Pakistan

Misinformation in the job market, such as candidates exaggerating or fabricating information on their CVs, makes employers reluctant to hire outside their networks. According to our data, 67% of firms recruit through referrals, limiting access for jobseekers without strong professional connections, particularly women and unemployed individuals. 

Hiring in many other low- and middle-income countries is similarly driven by referrals. In South Asia, where female labour force participation is low and gender segregation is high, these hiring frictions contribute to lower employment, discourage skill investment, and widen gender gaps in the labour market.

To address these challenges, we create a centralised reference verification system to provide employers with reliable information about jobseekers’ past work experiences and educational qualifications. To examine how jobseekers and employers respond to reference verification, we conduct a two-sided experiment on Job Talash (a job search portal) to understand how improved access to verified information influences job search behaviour and hiring decisions.

In this blog, we focus on jobseekers who have provided references, drawing on rich reference data to analyse key patterns in gender, reference reachability, and age-based differences.

Male jobseekers provide more references, and female jobseekers lack employment references

Figure 1 shows that male jobseekers are more likely to provide references than female job seekers: 35% versus 21%. Figure 2 shows among the 612 jobseekers who provided references, 429 provided employment references, while 183 provided educational references. 

Gender differences emerge in the type of references provided: 68% of jobseekers providing employment references were men, while 73% of those providing educational references were women. Given the low female labour force participation in Pakistan, this pattern suggests that male jobseekers are more likely to have access to employment references, whereas female jobseekers may rely more on educational credentials when signalling their qualifications to employers. 

Male jobseekers, who have higher employment participation rates are more likely to build networks that allow them to obtain work-related references, risking reinforcing existing gender disparities in hiring outcomes.

Figure 1: Who provides more references?

Figure 2: Do women and men provide different types of references?

Active jobseekers are more encouraged to provide references

At baseline (carried out at the start of the research), 83% of the women asked to provide a reference were unemployed, compared to 61% of the men. A similar pattern holds for the jobseekers who provide references. As Figure 3 shows, most women who listed references were unemployed at baseline, and while this was also true for men, the gap was smaller. 

Most jobseekers at baseline were actively searching for work. Among those asked to provide a reference, 59% of women and 75% of men were searching for jobs. However, as shown in Figure 4, jobseekers who were actively searching at baseline were more likely to provide references, with a larger gap observed among women.

This pattern may reflect higher motivation among active jobseekers, as they may view providing a reference as a way to strengthen their own job applications. Additionally, active jobseekers may find it easier to share referee details since they are more engaged with the job market, whereas inactive jobseekers may be more disconnected and less able to identify suitable referees.

Figure 3:  Who provides references: do employment status and gender matter?

Figure 4: Are jobseekers who provide references actively searching?

Educational references are more reachable and give female jobseekers a potential advantage

Not all references are equally easy to reach, but references provided by female jobseekers have a higher success rate. Figure 5 shows that 60% of references provided by women were reachable, compared to 51% for men. 

This may be because women tend to list educational references, which benefit from structured record-keeping in academic institutions. In contrast, employment references—more common among men—can be harder to reach due to job turnover, company closures, or outdated contact details. 

This suggests that educational references could potentially offer a reliable verification channel, potentially giving female jobseekers an advantage in signalling their qualifications.

Figure 5: Who provides more reachable references?

Jobseekers provide more work-related references as they grow older

The type of references jobseekers provide changes with age. Younger jobseekers, particularly those under 20 at baseline, mostly rely on educational references, as they have limited work experience. 

Figure 6 shows that 53% of jobseekers in this age group provided an educational reference. However, as jobseekers gain experience, they shift toward listing employment references. 

Among those aged 20-30 years, 74% provided work-related references, and for jobseekers over 30, this figure rises to 91%.

Figure 6: Do older jobseekers provide more work-related references?

Understanding the impact of reference verification

Our findings reveal key differences in how jobseekers provide references. Men are more likely to list work-related references, while women rely on educational ones—likely reflecting broader labour market gaps. 

Unemployed jobseekers, especially women, are more likely to provide references, and female jobseekers’ references are easier to verify. Younger applicants lean on educational references but shift to experience-based ones as they gain experience.

We are now exploring how reference verification impacts hiring and job search behaviour. Do employers prefer candidates with verified references? Do jobseekers change their search strategies when they know references will be checked? Future research will examine whether verification improves job applications, interviews, as well as jobseeker’s investment in skills over time. 

Policymakers and employers can benefit from understanding these gender differences in references to improve hiring and reduce employment barriers. Ensuring fair access to employment references, especially for women, can create a more level playing field. Strengthening verification processes can also build trust in hiring and help match the right candidates with the right jobs.