After conducting a survey of over 7,000 respondents, the Australian Institute of Family Studies has released its early findings as to how people felt their lives had been affected by the Covid-19 pandemic restrictions.
Given that about 80% of the respondents were female with a higher educational level than the general population, it may not be completely representative but some significant trends do emerge.
Chief findings were:
Women continued to do most of the housework as they did before the pandemic.
The mother continued to do most of the childcare/schooling as they did before the pandemic.
Almost half (43%) of respondents reported they or their partner had lost employment, reduced hours or wages. However 65% reported no real
change to their personal income.
Grandparents were not able to support the families or provide childcare as before.
Parent-only care rose from 30% before COVID-19 to 64% of families during the restrictions.
The proportion of people always working from home rose from 7% to 60% during the restrictions.
Young adults were disproportionately impacted by the economic downturn, being almost four times (15% vs 4%) more likely to ask for help from
government or NGOs.
Families in Australia Survey: Life during COVID-19, Report no. 1: Early findings, https://aifs.gov.au/publications/families-australia-survey-life-during-covid-19