Working mothers' dilemma during the COVID-19 pandemic: Evidence from China

Abstract

There is increasing evidence from developed countries showing that the COVID-19 recession disproportionately impacted the female labor force, causing a “She-cession”. This paper investigates the magnitude of the “She-cession” in China. Using a unique three-wave employee tracking survey of China in 2020, we portrayed the temporal impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on working women during and post the COVID-19 outbreak in 2020. Our results show a widening gender gap in unemployment, hours worked, and monthly salary throughout 2020. Marital status and children exacerbated the gender gaps; as expected, working mothers with a child aged 0–6 experienced the most adverse labor market outcomes. Moreover, working mothers with a child aged 0–6 displayed the worst mental health status compared to other groups throughout 2020.