Women to be focus of recovery planning

Advocates hope changes made by Ottawa could address social inequalities

OTTAWA— With women bearing the brunt of the COVID-19 pandemic, federal officials are trying to figure out how recovery efforts can help get women back to work, earning more money and securing more stable jobs.

Women have seen proportionately steeper job losses than men, and are more often in part-time work, as well as in sectors that were affected early on in the pandemic. Statistics Canada reported this month that 1.5 million women lost jobs over March and April, a 17 per cent drop in employment from February levels.

The actions that Ottawa takes could offer an opportunity to address some of the social inequities COVID-19 has exposed: that women are more often employed in marginal jobs; tend to make less money than men do; and represent the vast majority of health care, child care and elder care workers.

Child care is being flagged by many as the most pressing need to help women get back to work.

Jennifer Robson, a social policy expert from Carleton University whose advice has been sought by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in recent weeks, says temporary layoffs and reduced hours could quickly turn into permanent layoffs if businesses are ready to reopen but parents who don’t have child care can’t go back.

Canadian moms make 40 per cent of household income, which is an important part of the economy, Robson says. But it also means that families without child-care options will have a problem.

Since women make up about half of Canada’s workforce, economic recovery is mathematically impossible without women going back to work, says Armine Yalnizyan, a fellow with the Atkinson Foundation whose advice was also recently sought by the Prime Minister’s Office.

“There’s no recovery without a she-covery and no she-covery without child care,” she says.

Social Development Minister Ahmed Hussen has been leading an internal effort to determine how federal spending on child care can be better targeted. Experts and stakeholders have told him Ottawa can help provinces and territories address the patchwork of childcare options across the country.

Women and Gender Equality Minister Maryam Monsef also stresses the central role child care will play in Canada’s economic recovery effort.

“Access to skilled labour was already a challenge before COVID and we cannot afford to lose women who choose to work because of lack of available, affordable, high-quality child care. This will be fundamental to restarting our economy,” she said in a recent interview.

The virus has also exposed the fragility of the long-term care system. Nursing homes have seen the highest numbers of outbreaks and deaths from COVID-19, including among their staff. This has also had a particularly gendered impact, as a majority of workers in elder care centres are women.

The pandemic has revealed the importance of essential services, Yalnizyan says, which raises the question of whether government should be doing more to provide them.

“(Government) could be providing essential services for all workers, because that’s what we’re learning — that child care is an essential service, and so is drugs, dental and vision. It shouldn’t be tied to whoever your employer is,” she says.