Boundary-less and care-full: women academics' perception and negotiation of work-life domains during the COVID-19 work from home era at an Australian regional university

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article examines how women academics at an Australian regional university perceived caring responsibilities as an extension of their paid employment during the initial stages of the COVID-19 pandemic. It explores how women academics negotiated boundaries around paid work, caring as a component of paid work, and their private caring responsibilities in the first lockdown and work-from-home period. We surveyed academic staff at our university during the initial work-from-home period. Findings suggest women academics perceived an increase in performing caring tasks for students and colleagues. Our research finds that women academics modified their workday to accommodate increased requirements of their paid work, caring at work, and domestic caring responsibilities. We argue these findings identify biased practices in masculinized neoliberal universities. This has implications for women academics and their employers as the unspoken but expected responsibility for performing care within universities continues to fall on women in the academic workforce.