Mothers stay out of the job market due to housework – 05/13/2023 – Market

Despite advances in discussions about the division of household chores in recent years, household chores still largely fall to women and keep mothers with more children away from the labor market.

In the fourth quarter of 2022, out of a total of 1.9 million mothers with three or more children, 40.69% (almost 798.2 thousand) were out of the workforce because they had to take care of household chores, children or of other dependents.

It is the highest percentage for the period from October to December in six years. That is, since 2016.

Meanwhile, only 0.62% of men in couples with three or more children (the equivalent of 11.9 thousand) were out of the workforce due to household chores or caring for dependents in the fourth quarter of 2022.

This is the highest percentage for the period from October to December since the beginning of the time series in 2012, but the gap in relation to mothers persists.

This is what a survey by the research laboratory PUCRS DataSocial based on microdata from PNAD (National Household Sample Survey) Continuous, from IBGE (Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics) indicates.

The analysis covers men and women between 25 and 50 years of age who are part of heterosexual couples with or without children aged between 0 and 15 years.

The non-workforce population comprises professionals who are not employed or looking for opportunities in the formal or informal sector.

According to the PUCRS DataSocial survey, the differences are also marked among couples with fewer children.

Among women with two children aged 0 to 15 years, the percentage outside the workforce due to household chores or caring for dependents reached 28.83% in the fourth quarter of 2022. It is the highest level since 2016.

Among men with two children, the mark was just 0.45% in the final three months of 2022. Still, it is the highest in the series for the fourth quarter.

In the sample of couples with a child aged 0 to 15 years, the percentage of mothers out of work for domestic reasons was 21.89%, the highest since 2020. Among men with a child, the mark was 0.55% , the biggest in the series.

André Salata, a researcher at PUCRS DataSocial and one of those responsible for the survey, points out that the share of mothers outside the force had been falling before the Covid-19 pandemic. With the health crisis, which paralyzed schools and businesses, this group rose again.

“It is quite shocking data. Despite some changes that we are following in society, and which are very positive, there is still a very strong gender division. The results express this”, says Salata.

Among childless couples, the percentage of women outside the workforce due to household chores or caring for dependents was 14.87% in the fourth quarter of 2022. The proportion among men was 0.47%.

The survey also brings data on mothers and fathers outside the workforce for different reasons, which go beyond household chores and caring for dependents. The differences remain intense.

In this cutout, the percentage of women who were part of couples with at least three children and who were out of the workforce in the fourth quarter of 2022 was 50.05%. Among men with three or more children, the proportion was 6.16%.

In couples with two children, the percentage outside the force for various reasons was 35.88% for mothers and 4.87% for fathers in the fourth quarter of 2022.

In couples with one child, the percentage dropped to 30.18% for women and 4.72% for men. In couples without children, the share was 27.41% and 6.15%, respectively.

For Ely José de Mattos, a researcher at PUCRS DataSocial and one of those responsible for the survey, the data show that the inequality of insertion in the labor market has a structural character.

In Mattos’ view, combating this disparity depends on long-term actions. More immediately, a recommended measure would be to extend the leave for parents after the birth of their children, says the researcher.

The initiative would seek to balance household chores, but it would not solve the problems by itself, according to Mattos. “It’s something structural. It needs to be thought about for the long term.”

Salata goes along the same lines. For him, a “substantive improvement” involves “generational changes”, which do not happen overnight.

“The government cannot simply give a pen and oblige people to follow a certain lifestyle, but there are important measures that can be adopted, such as paternity leave for longer”, says Salata.

“Expanding the network of day care centers and full-time schools is an action that could also be adopted to make the situation better”, he adds.

Platform tries to help

While the country is not witnessing a profound change in these relationships, there are initiatives that seek to mitigate inequality of opportunities.

This is the case of the project by entrepreneur Renata Lino, 41, who created the job platform for mothers MommyTech.

The startup partners with companies interested in promoting diversity and receives resumes from mothers and pregnant women. “We have a database with [20 mil] typical and atypical mothers —100% women”, says Renata.

The platform filters this information based on the profile sought by the company and the preferences of mothers and pregnant women, in order to carry out a pre-screening.

The startup has helped more than 675 mothers to relocate directly and indirectly to the job market, according to the founder.

“We count as indirect vacancies the cases of mothers who received consultancy from MommyTech to improve themselves in skills desired by the market or make their curriculum more attractive”, he says.

Digital marketing professional Karin Hetschko, 40, managed to relocate herself after having conversations with Renata and having her resume sent by MommyTech to the startup Racoon, recently acquired by the multinational Media Monks.

Karin was out of work for five months after being fired from a foreign software development company in March 2022. She was the mother of a little over one year old child.

Complaints about the time Karin spent with her son were added to management via emails sent by the boss, says the professional. Karin claims that complaints about wage arrears for her team were the trigger for her dismissal.

Since then, she began to report that she was a mother in job interviews, even when she was not asked about the topic.

“I wasn’t asked at my old company, and I realized it was a mistake not to make that clear in the list, even though it’s not a strategy recommended by career experts.”

The job at Racoon as a supervisor of a team of developers came in the seventh interview. Since that appointment, Karin has been working remotely, which increases the time dedicated to caring for the family, according to her.

For Renata, gender-independent parental leave is the only way to place men and women on equal terms with employers and managers.

The founder of MommyTech says that, to date, she has not been able to find jobs for pregnant women. “It’s a very big stigma.”

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