"How Women Bear the Brunt of COVID-19's Damages on Work", January 2021

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The most recent JILPT survey revealed that the coronavirus pandemic is having a larger impact on the jobs of females than males. This is particularly true for females who are rearing children. When the survey asked 4,307 employees (aged 20 to 64) of private companies who were employed on April 1 about their employment situation in May, it found a remarkable gender gap in terms of percentage of persons who became unemployed or furloughed. In particular, it was apparent that female employees who are raising children under the age of 18 are in particularly disadvantageous circumstances.

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However, it is worth noting that, unlike during ordinary economic slowdowns, this recession is characteristic in that many child-rearing females are voluntarily refraining from working...

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Particularly in the case of child-rearing females, it appears the use of teleworking is not demonstrating the effects that might be expected. Possible factors behind this are the novel coronavirus’s making it difficult to choose to eat out, increased housework associated with preparing meals and the like, and increased child-rearing burden associated with the temporary closure of nurseries and schools. In other words, it seems likely that many women could not cope with teleworking alone and thus had no alternative but to be absent from work.

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JILPT’s May Survey shows that the novel coronavirus has disproportionate impact on women, reflected both on their deeper declining working hours and on their higher furloughed take-up rates relative to males. There are concerns that this situation will severely impact women’s careers if it continues. Moreover, if women’s earning keeps declining, it will also have a major impact on household finances.

...Some researchers point out that the wave of teleworking and other forms of work-style reform that is surging forward as a result of the novel coronavirus pandemic will have long-term benefits for women.

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