Parental Participation in a Pandemic Labor Market

RePEc Short ID: ppe260
ORCID iD: 0000-0002-2216-110X

Lofton, Olivia; Petrosky-Nadeau, Nicolas; Seitelman, Lily

Journal Article

Parental Participation in a Pandemic Labor Market

Abstract: Gender gaps in labor market outcomes during the pandemic largely reflect differences in parents’ experiences. Labor force participation fell much less for fathers compared with other men and all women at the onset of the pandemic; the recovery has been more pronounced for men and women without children. Meanwhile, labor force participation among mothers declined with the start of the school year. Evidence suggests flexibility in setting work schedules can offset some of the adverse impact on mothers’ employment, while the ability to work from home does not.

Keywords: COVID-19; gender; labor force participation;