Women at a clear disadvantage during the pandemic
"Over the past two years of the pandemic, women have been particularly challenged and under pressure," emphasises Hildegard Eckert, SkF Federal Chairwoman. Women in particular have had to cope with the double burden of working from home and supporting their children's schooling at home. Many women are still reducing their working hours because childcare cannot be provided in any other way. Role models and gender stereotypes that were long believed to be outdated are now threatening to become entrenched once again as a result of the pandemic.
Elisabeth Maskos, chairwoman of the Schweinfurt local association, emphasises: "The work of employees in counselling centres and inpatient and outpatient youth welfare facilities is also being overlooked by politicians amid the special challenges posed by the pandemic." Employees in youth welfare facilities or women's shelters cannot work from home, and they certainly cannot close the facilities if there are cases of coronavirus. They are always there for the children, young people and women. But even this paid care work remains largely invisible in the context of coronavirus policy. It receives little attention or support in the public and political sphere.
The SkF calls for the recognition of care work in both the private and professional spheres. Only when household and childcare tasks are distributed equally between both partners and care work is valued as highly as the production of goods will there be a real chance of gender equality.
Contact person:
engelhardt@skf-schweinfurt.de
