COVID-19 pandemic in Ireland and the gendered division of care work: the impact of public policy on unpaid work and female employment

This paper will explore the impact of COVID-19 public policy on gendered division of unpaid care work and its implications for female employment. By using the case study of Ireland, we will demonstrate how gender perspective was often missing from the decisions aimed at combating the public health crisis, and from policies implemented to mitigate the consequences of public health policies. As we argue, these decisions and policies exacerbated the pre-existing gender inequalities. Studies on previous crises showed that while economic downturns tend to have a more immediate impact on men, women suffer from the long-term consequences of the subsequent austerity measures (Cook and Grimshaw, 2021). However, international evidence suggests the COVID-19 pandemic had a profound impact on women on both, short- and long-term basis. (e.g., Matthewman and Huppatz, 2020). As we will show in this paper, women in Ireland were negatively affected by the pandemic and by the government responses to this crisis. First, women were more likely to be over-represented in front-line occupations, which not only suffered from extreme pressures during the pandemic but were also impacted by the lack of childcare provision during the first lockdown. Secondly, the extended closure of schools and childcare facilities had an impact on all working parents, particularly those working from home while caring for children. Although international research and the Irish survey data shows that men did increase their time dedicated to childcare during lockdowns, women continued to be more involved in the unpaid work and as well as in childcare duties (e.g., Chung et al., 2021). Finally, women were also more likely to take on other care responsibilities, including looking after the elderly relatives who were advised to ‘cocoon’. All these care needs, often combined with paid employment, were not addressed by the government policies, and thus had a negative impact on working lives of many women. Furthermore, the unequal division of housework and care work during the pandemic may have long-term consequences for female paid employment. This paper is based on data collected as part of the RESISTIRÉ (Responding to outbreaks through co-creative inclusive equality strategies and collaboration) research project. The RESISTIRÉ is an interdisciplinary project investigating how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected equality in 31 European countries, including Ireland. The project involves a ten-partner European consortium and network of researchers in the EU, the UK, Serbia, Iceland and Turkey. Theoretical conceptualisation of the project builds on an intersectional approach (Hankivsky et al., 2014) and the theoretical framework focuses on specific domains of gender inequality. The project meets its objectives in three cycles, each consisting of four steps combining quantitative and qualitative research with co-creation activities. In this paper we will utilise the data collected in Ireland during the first cycle of the study, which included the extensive mapping of policy and societal responses to COVID-19, the analysis of secondary survey data, workshop with civil society representatives, expert interviews, and individual narratives.