A 'she-cession' hurts us all

Every year in March we take stock of the status of women’s rights in the world. How far we’ve come and, more importantly, how much further we still have to go. But 2020 was a year like no other, also for gender equality.

The social and economic consequences of the pandemic have fallen disproportionally on women’s shoulders. So much so that there is even a word for it: “she-cession” –a term coined by C. Nicole Mason and meant to highlight that for the first time in history, the US is experiencing an economic downturn where unemployment and income losses are affecting women more than men.

But it is not only happening in the US. According to the most recent ILO report on the impact of the pandemic on work published in January, the global loss in employment for women in 2020 was 5%, versus 3.9% for men. Why are women more at risk than men of losing their jobs? A quarter of global job losses come from sectors in which women account for a higher proportion of the workforce: leisure, hospitality and retail have all been hit hardest.

But there’s another critical reason. Forced lockdowns mean many of us (including men) have experienced the escalating demand to provide childcare, education and housework: 52 hours a week on average, more than another full-time job. But the burden of unpaid care work falls unequally on women. Even before the pandemic women globally were doing on average 75% of unpaid care work. During covid, women have been spending the equivalent to a full working day a week more than man doing unpaid childcare (UN Women data).

As a result of covid one in four women have considered downshifting their careers or leaving work altogether, and the majority say childcare responsibilities are the main reason, according to latest McKinsey and Lean In ‘Women in the Workspace’ study.

Why does this matter? Several studies have found that the share of women in unpaid care work has a high and negative correlation with female labor-force participation rates. It also has a moderately negative relationship with women’s chances of participating in professional and technical jobs or assuming leadership positions. If this disproportionate impact on women goes unaddressed, it will not only put at risk gender equality, but also have global economic consequences.

During the covid crisis, Santander’s top priority has been (and still is) the wellbeing of our teams. We provided the tools for remote working after sending home 100,000 employees in record time. We also adapted our branch network to ensure the safety of our people who continued to interact with customers in person. As work-life balance and stress brought further challenges, we implemented flexible working arrangements and gave mental health support, as well as advancing payments and granting special loans.

As companies, we can, and must, do our part, however, government policies are crucial. If governments work together with the private sector to develop the right, evidenced-based interventions, we can counter workplace equality while encouraging a balanced recovery; promoting gender equality could add $13 trillion to the global GDP by 2030. If we ignore the fact that the pandemic is affecting women differently, our economic recovery will not only be unequal, but slower.

As we continue to plan our way out of this crisis, let’s remember that a “she-cession” hurts us all. When we support women, we support families and communities: the financial empowerment and economic wellbeing of women is good for everyone and it’s the foundation of an equitable, resilient and sustainable post-pandemic world.

*This article was originally published as part of OMFIF's 'Gender Balance Index 2021'