Socio-economic Aspects of the Crisis Caused by COVID-19: Effects of the Change in the Work Regime

Abstract

The unprecedented measures related to the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in a change in everyone’s lifestyle, but proved to be extremely detrimental to the psychological, social and economic well-being of a specific group in society, namely families with little children. In order to thoroughly analyze the challenges facing this crisis-stricken group, a qualitative study was carried out using the calendar interview method among 21 randomly selected working parents. The interviews were conducted in December 2021-January 2022. All interviewed parents have worked in a changed mode of work. This means transitioning from work at the office to work at home and combining it with caring for children who are unable to attend kindergarten or school. The results of the study show that the change in the mode of work in combination with other factors was among the leading causes of stress for the parents and children with lockdown conditions. The effect was especially strong for the women. In addition, specific sources of stress were disruption of social life, uncertainty about how long the situation will last, and the threat of a pandemic per se. Qualitative data analysis showed that the dominant emotion in the narratives about COVID-19 was fear. Manifested fears were not only related to health, but also to education, welfare and social consequences. The results of the content analysis point out that the measures in general affected predominantly household savings, but they were not related to significant changes in the standard of living. There were serious dynamics in the way participants cope with the changes in the work regime. Although it had seemed at first as a specific stressor for some of them, their attitudes changed over time. One year and a half after the pandemic breakout the respondents report mostly positive attitudes towards remote working and expectations that options for home office or “mixed” work regimes will be kept by employers as long-term practices. Overall, there were specific home office difficulties related to time management, task organization and home setting. The findings can be used by branch organizations and employers to provide assistance to employees and to build programs for social and economic support.