The effects of the Covid-19 pandemic have hit women particularly hard, according to the Work Now Report released by WerkLabs, the insights division of The Mom Project, a digital marketplace that connects local corporations with diverse and experienced women returning to work.
WerkLabs in April surveyed about 2,000 professionals in a variety of industries to learn how the Covid-19 pandemic has impacted work and home life. The research found women are twice as likely as their male counterparts to leave their employer in a year’s time due to their workplace experience during the pandemic. That number is deeply connected to workplace satisfaction during the pandemic with women scoring an average of 15 points lower than men on all drivers, meaning their work experience was more negative.
Of the professionals surveyed, more than one-third, 38%, reported both their work and well-being have been affected by the coronavirus pandemic. Many participants who volunteered to offer more information on how the pandemic has impacted them and/or their work experience noted that leadership believes because social activities are lessened or nonexistent as a result of the pandemic, the employee has more time for work and thus can handle a larger workload — regardless of work-life balance or other responsibilities like childcare.
However, the lines between parenthood and career are blurred indefinitely as a result of the pandemic and various shelter-in-place and stay-at-home orders and mandates. More than 50% of working parents are currently without childcare, and one in five working parents said either they or their partner are considering leaving the workforce to care for their children.
“The pandemic has forced an unprecedented rapid shift in workplace culture and it’s important we understand and address the positives and negatives of this change because this may be the ‘new normal’ moving forward, or at least for an indefinite time,” said Pamela Cohen, head of WerkLab.
Among initiatives and resources to help support women during the Covid-19 crisis, The Mom Project recently launched the $500,000 Stronger Together Fund dedicated to the employment of women during the pandemic, Resume Rev product, and Unity Program, a program that pairs individual job seekers impacted by Covid-19 hardships with professional coaches and recruiting/talent professionals.