Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic, the impact of which was felt all over the world in the first quarter of 2020, soon turned into a socioeconomic crisis. In this process, women felt the crisis more deeply due to their current disadvantages. Women are recognized as the leading actors of the private sphere due to their historical roles. During the epidemic period, these burdens have increased exponentially for women who have more burdens of unpaid work in non-crisis periods. In addition, their paid work in the public sphere has been interrupted or completely terminated more than men. In this process, the fact that women are disproportionately affected by the socioeconomic consequences of the pandemic raises questions about whether the global health crisis is a gender crisis. This study aims to reveal the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on gender inequality in the economy. When current labor market data are examined, it is seen that the COVID-19 pandemic has increased global gender inequality in the economy in a global context. Instead of gender-blind policies, policies that are sensitive to gender equality in the private and public spheres should be adopted quickly.