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Gender inequality in the economy: how does it manifest itself, what are its main characteristics and what aspects of gender inequality in the economy have been most highlighted by the coronavirus crisis? Swedbank economist Greta Ilekytė noted that more women are currently losing their jobs.
“Due to the quarantine restrictions imposed on some sectors of the economy, the total number of unemployed is currently 11.5 percent. Statistics show that the ranks of unemployed women are growing much faster than those of men. According to data from the Employment Service, the number of unemployed women increased by up to a fifth, while the number of men increased by 14%.
Compared to previous crises, this is quite unusual. More men than women work, for example, in the construction sector, which is more involved in economic cycles, so that the latter suffer the most during a recession. As a result, in the past, the ranks of unemployed men have grown more during crises. But this crisis is specific.
Through it, we note that women are more dominant not only in the health and education sectors, but also in the areas of accommodation, artistic, organizational and beauty activities. According to data from the Department of Statistics, up to 75 percent. women in the accommodation and catering sectors are women, “explained the expert, why so far more women than men have been affected by the quarantine crisis.
Women also make up the majority of part-time workers. Furthermore, women earn around € 110 less “on their hands” than men.
More women stay home
Society tends to say that men are increasingly taking the initiative to care for children, taking parental leave. The specialist also commented on the situation during quarantine, when children learn remotely.
“It just caught our eye then. However, according to Sodra, as many as 60 percent. Certificates of work incapacity were issued for women. This reveals that with the closure of educational institutions, schools and kindergartens, the care of Children has largely fallen on the shoulders of women.
If educational institutions remain closed, some women may lose their professional skills and thus lag behind other colleagues, and income inequality may further increase.
But in this case, there are opportunities. When both parents work remotely from home, the boundaries of home preparation work distribution can be blurred.
Employers are already forced to look at working hours more flexibly and therefore help employees reconcile work and household chores, childcare, “said G. Ilekytė.
Lonely parents: no way out
There’s also a lot of talk right now about the consequences of a pandemic and reducing the economic consequences of quarantine at the state level. The specialist recalled the group most affected by the quarantine.
“First, the state should generally recognize that men and women generally need slightly different measures to overcome the storm caused by the quarantine.”
The dark side of quarantine is not only visible to women for income. The Lithuanian police register an increase of about a fifth in the number of complaints of domestic violence. The same trend can be seen in other countries of the European Union. However, other states are responding more quickly, taking steps to ensure security.
We often forget single-parent families who, during quarantine, had no choice but to stay home and care for their children. A quarter of all households are single parents, and three quarters are single mothers.
These people, I think, face the worst situation. For safety reasons, contact with the elderly is avoided during this crisis, so it was not possible to ask grandparents to care for children who are no longer able to attend kindergartens and schools. “
Stereotypes still prevail
In the past 10 years, Lithuania, like other European countries, has achieved certain goals to reduce gender inequality. The economist responded if the crisis could stop that progress.
“The crisis can really halt progress, especially if we consider income inequality and the gender pay gap, it can even widen in the short term. But I have a positive outlook on the future and I hope that the crisis will bring not only losses but also opportunities “, said.
However, prior to quarantine, the gender equality situation was also not ideal. G. Ilekytė also emphasized the importance of stereotypes.
“According to 2018 data, the pay gap between men and women was 13 percent. In this regard, Lithuania does not really look bad among other countries.
However, when it comes to the number of staff, if we look at the number of MPs in the Seimas or the staff of the Central Bank, and calculate how many men and how many women work, the situation is much worse than in other EU countries.
Few women choose to work or grow in these sectors. Only one in ten girls entering high school chooses to study computer science, mathematics, or engineering.
I would argue that social norms and stereotypes, as girls supposedly don’t know mathematics, are the main cause of such problems. It takes time, but they can disappear ”, the specialist is convinced.
The economist also provided examples of where the stereotypical approach begins.
“The formation of all those norms begins in childhood. It seems that if a person wants to do a certain job, can’t we interfere? But those choices are actually often determined by the attitudes of the environment, childhood, teachers and parents After all, no research or test has shown that girls pay worse for mathematicians.
The role of the state is also important in this: certain acts and decisions have an impact and can speed up or slow down the processes of promoting gender equality ”, G. Ilekytė did not hide.
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