Gender Inequality in Unpaid Care Work During the COVID-19 Pandemic : A Cross-Country Comparison of France, Germany, Italy, and the UK

Women continue to undertake the majority of unpaid care work—such as childcare and housework—compared with their male counterparts across Europe. Owing to the closure of schools, childcare facilities, and most workplaces, the COVID-19 pandemic triggered speculation that gender inequality in unpaid care work may diminish as a result of mixing of work and family life. This chapter analyses national survey data collected during the pandemic in the UK, Italy, France, and Germany to investigate changes in gender differences over time. Specifically, it examines housework and childcare in France and the UK, from Spring 2020 to Spring 2021, comparing these statistics with pre-pandemic gender differences where possible. We demonstrate that women consistently report undertaking more housework and childcare hours than men in both the UK and France on all occasions, with gender differences in housework greatest during the first lockdown in both countries. Two-thirds of partnered women report doing all or most of the housework in Italy, Germany, and the UK at all time points. Overall, gender inequality in housework and childcare remained largely unchanged during the pandemic, reflecting pre-existing disparities. This pattern was consistent across all of the countries examined, highlighting the persistence of gendered behaviour in unpaid care work that proves resistant to change.