Covid-19 and Women’s Triple Burden: Vignettes from Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Vietnam and Australia

Helen Jaqueline McLaren, Karen Rosalind Wong, Kieu Nga Nguyen and Komalee Nadeeka Damayanthi Mahamadachchi
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Helen Jaqueline McLaren: College of Education, Psychology and Social Work, Flinders University, Bedford Park 5042, Australia
Karen Rosalind Wong: College of Business, Government and Law, Flinders University, Bedford Park 5042, Australia
Kieu Nga Nguyen: College of Education, Psychology and Social Work, Flinders University, Bedford Park 5042, Australia
Komalee Nadeeka Damayanthi Mahamadachchi: College of Business, Government and Law, Flinders University, Bedford Park 5042, Australia

Social Sciences, 2020, vol. 9, issue 5, 1-11

Abstract: During disease outbreaks, women endure additional burdens associated with paid and unpaid work, often without consideration or the alleviation of other life responsibilities. This paper draws on the concept of the triple burden in theorizing the gender divisions in productive and reproductive work and community activities in the context of disaster. Events that include famine, war, natural disaster or disease outbreak are all well documented as increasing women’s vulnerability to a worsening of gendered burdens. In the case of the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic, this is no different. Focussing on Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Vietnam and Australia, the four vignettes in this paper serve to highlight the intersections between Covid-19 and gendered burdens, particularly in frontline work, unpaid care work and community activities. While pre-disaster gender burdens are well established as strong, our analysis during the early months of the pandemic indicates that women’s burdens are escalating. We estimate that women will endure a worsening of their burdens until the pandemic is well under control, and for a long time after. Public policy and health efforts have not sufficiently acknowledged the issues concerned with the associations between gender and disease outbreaks.

Keywords: Covid-19; coronavirus; disease outbreak; women; gender; productive work; reproductive work; triple burden; triple roles; Sri Lanka; Malaysia; Vietnam; Australia (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: A B N P Y80 Z00 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
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