COVID‐19 and raising the value of care
Bobbi Thomason, Inmaculada Macias‐Alonso
Abstract
In this opinion piece, we argue the current pandemic is shining a light on caregiving as critical work that is under-valued and under-paid. We call upon national lawmakers to raise the value of care work. Doing so would also make progress in solving another national crisis: closing the gender wage gap. We explore how the gender wage gap is driven primarily by the fact that men and women sort into different work, with women being over-represented in work where they care for others and in work that allows them to care for their families.
Topics & Concepts
Care workClosing (real estate)Work (physics)Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)Raising (metalworking)Value (mathematics)PandemicWagePaid worksort2019-20 coronavirus outbreakPolitical scienceSevere acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2)Public relationsSociologyPsychologyDemographic economicsEconomicsMedicineLawComputer scienceEngineeringMechanical engineeringPathologyInformation retrievalVirologyInfectious disease (medical specialty)DiseaseMachine learningOutbreakEmployment and Welfare StudiesGender, Labor, and Family DynamicsWork-Family Balance Challenges