Impacts of the COVID‐19 pandemic and unpaid care work on informal workers' livelihoods

Abstract

The COVID‐19 pandemic has led to a health, economic and care crisis for all workers including those in the informal economy. This article draws on data from the first round of a mixed‐methods longitudinal study conducted (in June 2020) by the research advocacy network Women in Informal Employment Globalizing and Organizing (WIEGO) in partnership with informal workers’ organizations in 12 cities. It assesses the impact of the multidimensional crisis on care responsibilities and the resulting effect on livelihoods and food security. A gendered analysis of paid work and unpaid care work sheds light on the unique features of the current ‘pandemic recession's’ impact on the world's labour force.

Smart investment in global childcare requires local solutions and a coordinated research agenda

“…Childcare is a smart investment and everyone’s concern—not a ‘sunk cost’ or a women’s issue 6. The pandemic highlighted the cost of inaction in addressing childcare and raised the need to advocate for a change in narrative globally 22. We are encouraged by recent attention to childcare infrastructure and investment, but highlight the necessity of a locally led research and implementation agenda.…”

Essential yet excluded: COVID‐19 and the decent work deficit among domestic workers in Brazil

“…This burden was mostly borne by women, meaning that they were also less available for paid activities (UN Women 2020; Fortier 2020; Power 2020; Collins et al 2021). Poor women, such as domestic workers, were heavily impacted by the absence of healthcare and childcare services, making it more difficult for them to reconcile work with family obligations (Camilletti and Nesbitt-Ahmed 2022;Ogando, Rogan and Moussié 2022). What is perhaps less discussed is the connection between households' increased burden and the fact that domestic workers, who were usually paid to do the reproductive work of others, were either being dismissed or had a heavier workload.…”

Pandemic, informality and women’s work: Redefining social protection priorities at WIEGO

“…A second blind spot is the failure of social protection systems to recognise how women's unequal responsibility for unpaid care work shapes both the kind of informal employment women engage in as well as their earning potential. The WIEGO Global Survey shows that the additional unpaid care work taken on disproportionately by women during lockdowns and school and creche closures led to a persistent fall in hours worked and earnings for women workers in the informal economy who reported an increase in their care responsibilities (Ogando et al, 2021). In April 2020, these women worked 33% fewer days than other women and were earning less than 50% of their pre-COVID earnings by July 2020.…”