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As we count down to Budget day on October 13th, there is much discussion on priorities and how best to drive our recovery from the pandemic. What is missing from the debate is the role the care economy can play in laying the foundation for our social and economic recovery.
The pandemic has put a real spotlight on the value of care in our society. Care is a fundamental part of our social infrastructure, no less vital than physical infrastructure, such as transport and utilities. Yet, despite record spending over the past year, the care economy has been neglected in investment decisions. And it is women who continue to pay the price for this.
We know that women came into the pandemic with fewer resources - less wealth, lower incomes, greater unpaid care responsibilities and a reliance on low paid, precarious work. And as has been highlighted by the National Women’s Council, our members and others, the social and economic consequences of the pandemic have fallen again on the shoulders of women.
To address this inequality and achieve our goal of a jobs-led recovery, we need to invest in care. Early years education and school age childcare, in particular, are essential for a functioning labour market. The best way to achieve this is through a public, not for profit childcare model. Yet, Ireland has one of the most poorly funded childcare systems in Europe. A system that locks women out of the labour market and wider participation in society and traps the childcare workforce in low paid employment.
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Investment in childcare makes good economic sense. Much of the upfront investment is recouped though higher tax revenue and reduced social welfare costs. Childcare investment will help to generate the economic and social returns that will allow us to service and repay our debt.
Women’s care responsibilities, however, do not end with childrearing. Older women are five times more likely to leave the labour force for care responsibilities. What we need is investment in a public care infrastructure that supports people at all stages of their lives. This will benefit us all but it will in particular support women and help disabled people who are denied access to the labour market due to a lack of supports such as personal assistance.
Investing in the care economy is about raising the pay and improving the working conditions of the care workforce, including the many migrant women on which the sector depends. Again, this will bring economic returns through higher tax revenue and increased spending in local economies.
Our investment should also focus on supporting women and men, including lone parents, to combine unpaid care with paid employment. This means providing better, paid family leave, family friendly, flexible work practices and supporting women to retain their connection with the labour market.
Despite the disproportionate impact of the Covid-19 crisis on women, little attention has been given to gender equality in our economic decision making.
Budget 2021 failed to invest in childcare and no funding directed to the care economy is included in Ireland’s plan for spending EU pandemic recovery funds.
Our National Economic Recovery Plan recognises the additional demands for skills related to healthcare and social care to meet the needs of our population, yet no budget is allocated to address this. Instead, investments have tended to focus on boosting jobs within male-dominated industries such as construction and energy, despite the stronger impact of the pandemic on female dominated sectors.
The Government has recognised the need for investment to address the climate crisis but has not considered the huge potential of investment in our public care infrastructure to tackle climate change and shift towards a carbon neutral economy.
Investment in care has been shown to act as a better post-pandemic economic stimulus than investment in traditional economic recovery approaches. Producing significantly less emissions than many other sectors, care jobs are also green jobs. Investment in care is a win-win as it can help to build a society that is more sustainable as well as more equal.
It’s long past time Government recognises that care is the foundation on which our society and economy is built and needs to be prioritised in our recovery from the pandemic. Budget 2022 must address these omissions through significant investment in a public model of early years education and care, in social care services and supports and in a welfare state that facilitates women and men to play an equal role in caring and paid work. There can be no functioning economy without a functioning care economy.
Orla O’Connor is Director of the National Women’s Council (NWC), the leading national representative organisation for women and women’s groups in Ireland.