During the pandemic, traditional gender roles seemed to be reinforced. For instance, one survey found that twice as many girls reported doing extra household chores, such as cooking for their family, as boys did. This extended to cleaning, shopping, and looking after siblings. Research from the University of East Anglia highlights how this divide contributes to the gender pay gap later in life.

“Unequal participation in household work starts at a young age, widening differences over time suggest gendered trajectories,” the researchers explain.

The study found that the employment participation of women is significantly affected by the weight of any care burden they have as children, with this then adding to any inequality gaps seen. The researchers examined data from the Young Lives project, which tracks 12,000 children in Peru, Ethiopia, Vietnam, and India from 8 until 22. They were analyzed in terms of not only the number of childhood chores they did but also their employment participation, including the type of employment and the sector they worked in.

Unequal household roles

The researchers cite data from UNICEF that shows that girls typically spend 40% more time on domestic chores than boys do. What’s more, this inequality is linked to others, such as access to piped water, which typically increases the amount of work involved.

This reduces the time available for going to school, or if in school to study, which significantly impacts the future employment prospects of girls. As a result, the researchers believe that any policy interventions need to fully account for the unequal distribution of household works if they are to successfully tackle gender inequality in the labor market.

“Longer hours of unpaid household work that reduces girls’ time for study may therefore limit their future lives by constraining employment opportunities,” the researchers explain. “This confirms that the care burden to women of their greater share of household work starts back in childhood.”

Gender employment gap

By the age of just 22, the researchers found that men were 15% more likely to participate in the labor market than women. What’s more, while men would earn on average $1.77 per hour, for women this falls to just $1.46 per hour.

The researchers believe that there is a clear link between household chores and job quality, with this reflected both in the type of job one does and the earnings one is able to secure from it.

“It seems that in comparison to men, women’s employment is likely to be driven to a greater extent by lack of choice or by need, and is characterized by fewer opportunities for well-paid, higher-quality employment,” they conclude.