European women’s work-life balance has deteriorated since COVID – survey

Work-life balance for European women has deteriorated since the COVID-19 pandemic began in 2020. According to a report by the European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE).

EIGE’s Gender Parity Index 2022, a care-focused theme, showed that the pandemic has increased informal and unpaid care at home, putting pressure on women in particular.

Women who took part in the study were more likely than men to face interruptions while working from home, the report said. An average of 20% of telecommuting mothers said that she could not work an hour without being interrupted by her child, compared to her 15% of telecommuting fathers.

The disruption to childcare services has also hit women’s earnings. They were more likely to work less hours, miss work, take unpaid leave, or quit their jobs altogether.

“The full extent of the social and economic impact is yet to be revealed, but before and throughout the pandemic, women were more likely to be unemployed or work less hours than they would like,” said Wednesday. A report published in said.

Nevertheless, the European Union’s index of progress in gender equality rose slightly to 68.6 points out of 100, 5.5 points higher than in 2010.

Sweden, Denmark, and the Netherlands ranked high, while Greece, Romania, and Hungary ranked low. Cyprus was fifth from the bottom.

Women in positions of authority have greatly contributed to this slow growth, but women remain underrepresented in politics, accounting for just over one-third of members of local and regional/regional councils and 33% of parliamentarians. EIGE said.

The gender gap persists among key decision-makers in the EU’s leading companies and financial institutions, with women accounting for 8% of CEOs, 21% of board members and 34% of non-board members in the first half of 2022 . Said.

(Reuters)