The COVID-19 pandemic is practically forcing working moms out of the workforce. Since the pandemic started, women have been leaving the workforce at a rate not seen since the end of World War II. At the end of World War II, the return of veterans who were
- Author: Kelly Cooke
- Posted: 2024-06-28
Types of Jobs That Have Been Lost
In the Los Angeles, CA, area, 40% of the job losses were in the leisure and hospitality industry. Another large chunk was in the entertainment industry. Those sectors employ a lot of women. In both of them, women account for more than 60% of workers. This information comes from a report on job losses by a sociologist named Sara Jane Glynn, which was released on Sunday, February 21.
Women Are Being Pressured to Step Up At Home
In addition to the job losses, Glynn says that working moms are doing most of the stepping up as childcare centers and schools shut down. Women who have lost their jobs in a hard-hit industry and who now have to watch their toddlers or help their school-age children with remote learning for seven hours a day will have a difficult time finding a new job. Until schools and childcare centers reopen, these women may not be able to accept a new job. It is an unfortunate situation that the United States doesn't have any subsidized child care or even enough high-quality childcare for newborns through pre-teen children. Women could get charged with neglect if they leave their kids home alone all day, and their kids could end up in an unsafe situation. If they don't work, they might find themselves facing eviction or foreclosure, loss of utilities or without food. That could also lead to family and child services stepping in and investigating the family. Women are in a no-win situation no matter what they do.
Women Still Do the Majority of Caregiving
In the United States and around the world, women still do the vast majority of caregiving for children, the elderly and the sick. Women also still do the majority of household labor. This is true whether or not the women have a different paid job. The fact that women continue to earn less than men, even if they do the same work, makes the problem worse. When women give up their jobs, it's harder for them to get back to where they were on the wage scale. Their total lifetime earnings are lower when they take a break, even a short one, from the workforce.
What One Mom Said Happened to Her
One Los Angeles area mom said that her life turned upside down last March when COVID-19 became a pandemic. Overnight, she went from being a vice president at a marketing agency to being a full-time, unpaid teacher, chef, maid, mom and housewife. This woman has three children and said that her decision was not a conscious one. It was made out of necessity. She's not sure if there will be a job available in her same line of work when the schools reopen and life starts to get back to normal.
What Happens in Single-parent Households
Many moms are single parents who have to work in order to provide for their children. Not all fathers pay child support, and the amounts they do pay are rarely enough to cover a family's utilities, rent, food, transportation, healthcare, clothing and educational expenses. Some single moms have had to network with other moms and create a sort of social bubble in which they take turns being the caregiver. This only works if their jobs are flexible. Others have had to reach out to family members, but that doesn't work if their nearby family members are elderly and therefore at a higher risk of COVID-19 complications. As more people get vaccinated, it may be less risky for grandparents to do some childcare so that moms can get back to their jobs. Some employers have offered alternate work schedules, and some single parents are lucky enough to have a job they can do from home.
