Written by Emily Cranston
January 20, 2022
As we head into the new year, still grappling with the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is important to consider those who have been the most adversely affected by COVID-19, that is, women and girls. In my experience, this impact can easily be seen by talking to any working mom, as they likely had to take on extra responsibilities in caring for their children during the pandemic. Or looking at the professions most at risk for COVID-19 exposure, most of which rely on a population of workers who are majorly women, such as personal support workers, nurses, social workers, for example. What one might not as readily see in their daily life, and what I have not adequately considered, is the impacts of COVID-19 on women at a global level. It is not so commonplace to hear about how the rates of child marriage have increased, how violence against women and girls have been impacted, or the persistence of discriminatory laws against women, to name a few. However, indicators such as the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) allow us to observe some of the devastating changes in the progress made toward achieving gender equality.
The United Nations released their Sustainable Development Goals report for 2021 this past June, providing an update on the SDG 5, that is, to achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls. Their report gives an overview on how the pandemic has affected global progress against child marriage, the unequal burden of unpaid work and decreasing numbers of women in the labour force, women in decision-making positions, and discriminatory laws. As many people do not have the time to read this report, I will attempt to provide some of the main findings, as these issues are of great importance for the lives of many women and are worthy of consideration by all.
Child Marriage
There has been a promising decline in child marriage worldwide, with a 15% decrease in the past 10 years, however the practice has not been eliminated. Unfortunately, COVID-19 stands to derail this progress due to safety measures put in place in many countries such as school shutdowns, economic hardship, and instability of reproductive health services. In their 2021 report, the United Nations estimate that “over the next decade, up to 10 million more girls will be at risk of child marriage as a result of the pandemic.” Moreover, they add that this is alongside the 100 million girls who had already been estimated to become child brides previously.
Unequal Burden of Unpaid Work and Decline in Labour Force
Although both men and women have taken on greater unpaid work and have experienced unexpected job loss, women have taken on an unequal share of this burden. Based on a 16-country study, it was found that women’s at-home childcare workload increased by 5 hours per week whereas men’s only increased by 4. Yet, even with the increased demands, time spent on childcare per week for men didn’t exceed the estimate of time spent on childcare for women before the pandemic. Women’s time spent on childcare increased from 26 to 31 hours per week whereas men’s time spent on childcare increased from 20 hours to 24 hours, still 2 hours less than the women’s pre-pandemic estimate. These estimates help provide a quantitative perspective to the still heavily biased gender roles that are found in many countries today, including Canada. The implication that women will be the ones to primarily care for children is still enforced heavily and the absence of participation in the caregiving role is often looked down upon, leaving the burden of childcare resting on women’s shoulders.
Participation in Decision-Making
This report gives a bleak picture of the future of women’s equal participation in decision-making in national parliaments. The United Nations estimated that “At the current rate, it will take no fewer than 40 years to achieve gender parity in national parliaments.” Unfortunately, this bleak picture is the reality of the situation, in which quotas have been the most instrumental tool in increasing the proportion of women in parliamentary seats, but still only 27.4% of these seats are held by women in countries with these quotas in 2020. Without the quotas, a dismal 15.6% of these seats are held by women. Moreover, managerial roles in the global labour force are 28.2% women, a 3% increase from 2000 to 2019, with women representing 39% of the total labour force. The pandemic’s impact on women leaving the work force jeopardizes the small amount of progress that has been made in increasing women’s presence in managerial positions. I think it has become even more important to question why there is not more women in decision-making positions? Having the conversation about why quotas need to be instituted to ensure equality is tough, especially when they are with friends and family who don’t seem to understand that systematic discrimination and bias has not been eliminated from the world, but, in my opinion, it is often a very small thing I can try to do to support women.
Discriminatory Laws
Women’s human rights are impacted by discriminatory laws in many countries. In a sample of 95 countries based on four areas of law in 2020, budgetary commitments for the eventual implementation of legislation on violence against women was common, however 63% have not instituted rape laws on the basis of consent. Moreover, this variation in policy is found in relation to gender discrimination in the work force as well, as over 90% of the included countries have mandated gender non-discrimination in the labour force but approximately half of these countries prevent women from entering certain jobs or industries. Unfortunately, this higher-level depiction of saying one thing and doing another is also too often felt by women at the interpersonal level. It is very easy to say you support women, but something as simple as calling out the sexist behaviour of your friends when casual comments are made on women’s bodies or believing in a women’s ability to do work typically done by men are not always as easy.
This summary of the state of gender equality, in areas related to Sustainable Development Goal 5, reported by the United Nations in 2021 paints an unsettling picture. Women have been carrying the burden of gender inequality for quite some time, and the COVID-19 pandemic has only introduced greater hardship and stands to reverse some of the progress made toward achieving gender equality. However, as the report also points out, “The crisis presents an opportunity to re-shape and rebuild systems, laws, policies, and institutions to advance gender equality.” And as we enter 2022, I hope governments and communities at every level take advantage of this rare opportunity.
Sources:
United Nations. (2021, June). The Sustainable Development Goals Report 2021. United Nations Statistics Division. https://unstats.un.org/sdgs/report/2021/
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