The Impact of Covid-19 on Working Mums

The Covid-19 pandemic has been hard for many individuals and groups, with working mums, particularly single working mums, being one of them.

But the picture is complex. Women dominate in many of the most risky frontline sectors such as health, social care and education and in some of the hardest hit sectors such as hospitality and retail. Parttime jobs, traditionally done by women, have seen a precipitous fall, BUT women are less likely to be unemployed than men and many have gone into full-time roles.

Then there is self-employment which has seen a big decline. A recent report from IPSE and Starling Bank showed women freelancers have been hardest hit financially by late payments of money owed to them and the associated mental impact and women-led businesses have suffered disproportionately. Our latest survey shows lockdown restrictions and school or year group closures are still causing huge challenges.

What is clear is that the impact of childcare problems during the pandemic has been most keenly felt by women, with countless studies, including our own surveys, showing women have been carrying most of the childcare/home schooling burden, despite dads increasing their input generally.

Article by Mandy Garner, Managing Editor of Working Mums. You can read the full article in our latest issue.