Juggling during Lockdown: Balancing Telework and Family Life in Pandemic Times and Its Perceived Consequences for the Health and Wellbeing of Working Women

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted work-family balance due to lockdown measures. The aim of this study was to explore the experiences of working mothers in Spain and the consequences of trying to balance work and family for their health and wellbeing. We conducted a qualitative study based on 18 semi-structured interviews with mothers of children under 10. Five themes were identified: (1) Telework—characteristics and challenges of a new labor scenario; (2) Survival and chaos—inability to work, look after children, and manage a household at the same time; (3) Is co-responsibility a matter of luck?—challenges when sharing housework during lockdown; (4) Breakdown of the care and social support system; and (5) decline in health of women trying to balance work and family life. Mothers who had to balance telework against family life suffered physical, mental, and social effects, such as anxiety, stress, sleep deprivation, and relationship problems. This study suggests that, in situations of crisis, gender inequality increases in the household, and women tend to shift back to traditional gendered roles. Governments and employers should be made aware of this, and public policies should be implemented to facilitate work-family reconciliation and co-responsibility within couples

Teleworking Effects on Mental Health—A Systematic Review and a Research Agenda

“…The results indicate that teleworking can influence workers’ behavior, regardless of the services or positions held (e.g., teaching, administrative, psychologists, and hospital staff). That is, irrespective of the role performed, workers are exposed to a set of factors that can trigger different pathologies, a finding found mainly among female workers [ 9 , 19 , 22 , 55 , 68 , 69 , 71 , 78 , 79 , 81 ].…”

“…These conditions, which can be perceived separately or together, represent an imbalance between work requirements and the physical and mental capabilities of workers, which can accentuate feelings of frustration and inertia [ 49 , 96 ]. Furthermore, the lack of delimitation between personal and professional life, noted in many contexts [ 71 , 81 ], can increase the risk of exhaustion/burnout and work overload [ 10 , 66 ].…”

“…In addition, a balanced diet and relief from the workplace pressures are also mentioned. On the other hand, regarding the negative effects, mental health and psychological disorders appear to be the most challenging consequences of remote work, with records of a considerable increase in headaches, irritability [ 61 ], impatience, anxiety, fear, discouragement [ 21 , 69 ], lack of motivation [ 23 ], irregular sleep, general tiredness, and feelings of ineptitude with the work due to essentially working conditions, work intensity, and a substantial increase in the number of hours worked [ 20 , 22 , 30 , 71 , 72 ].…”

“…The health problems potentially associated with remote work during the pandemic were highlighted [ 78 ]. Furthermore, it was also possible to assert that women were more affected when compared to men, both on a professional social and personal level [ 22 , 55 , 68 , 69 , 71 , 72 , 79 ]. The expectations of managers and the lack of flexibility were the triggers for the increase in stress and feelings of inadequacy at work.…”

Exploring barriers and facilitators of different work modalities from employees' perceptions: insights from workers and recommendations for organizations

“…Additionally, only few studies have employed qualitative methodologies to delve into individuals’ experiences and employees’ perception over adaptations (Agarwal, 2021; Korkeakunnas et al. , 2023; Loezar-Hernández et al. , 2023; Toros et al.…”