The COVID-19 pandemic tested not only healthcare and economic systems, but also the internal balance of households. With schools closed, forced remote work, and an abrupt reorganization of daily life, a key question arose: did the lockdown reinforce gender inequalities in employment and the division of domestic labor?
This question is answered by a researcher from the Department of Applied Economics and Quantitative Methods at the University of La Laguna José Enrique Rodríguez Hernández in his recent study published in 2025 in the Journal for Labour Market Research and titled “How has the partner influenced the spouse's employment situation in Spain before and during Covid-19?”. This work, which has sparked international academic interest, has been nominated for several awards for its innovative approach and social relevance.
Over the past few decades, female labor force participation in Spain has increased significantly, driven by higher levels of education and greater career aspirations. This process has led to a rise in dual-income households and has weakened the traditional model of the man as the sole breadwinner.
However, as Rodríguez Hernández points out, this progress has not always been accompanied by an equitable redistribution of housework and childcare. “The big question,” she explains, “is whether this increase in female employment has been accompanied by a fairer sharing of responsibilities within the home.”.
The 2020 lockdown provided an exceptional opportunity to analyze this issue. The closure of schools and nurseries, along with the rise of remote work and temporary layoffs, profoundly altered both the labor market and family life.
Education and partnership
What distinguishes this study from previous research is its joint analysis of two key factors: the couple's employment status and the relative educational level between both members of the household.
Until now, most studies have analyzed these elements separately, while Rodríguez Hernández studies them simultaneously using multinomial econometric models applied to data from the Labor Force Survey from 2019, 2020, and 2021. Furthermore, the study does not simply distinguish between employment and unemployment, but also differentiates between full-time work, voluntary part-time work, involuntary part-time work (underemployment), and unemployment. This approach allows for a more accurate capture of the real inequalities in the labor market.
Thus, one of the most relevant aspects of the study is the analysis of female underemployment, a reality that remains understudied despite its widespread nature. According to data from the National Institute of Statistics cited in the research, in 2020, 74% of part-time employment in Spain was held by women, and more than half of them worked part-time involuntarily; that is, not by choice, but because they could not find full-time employment compatible with their circumstances.
“We’re talking about an underutilization of talent,” the researcher emphasizes. “It has economic, social, and psychological costs; it affects people’s well-being and motivation, and it also impacts productivity and their attitude toward work, which directly affects company performance.”.
In general terms, underemployment affects more than 11% of employed women in Spain, a considerable percentage that demonstrates this is a structural problem and not merely an individual or circumstantial phenomenon. The combination of involuntary part-time work and unequal domestic responsibilities reinforces the gender gap in the labor market, keeping many women in positions with less career advancement, lower pay, and limited opportunities for development. Thus, female underemployment is not only an indicator of economic inequality, but also of inequality of power and opportunity within households and society at large.
The study's results show that, in general, men's and women's employment patterns did not change drastically as a result of the pandemic. However, a significant phenomenon was detected: between 2019 and 2020, there was a slight reinforcement of the traditional division of labor. During the first year of lockdown, men strengthened their position in full-time employment, while women assumed a greater burden of domestic work and increased their likelihood of working part-time.
This effect was moderate and temporary. In 2021, the indicators returned to levels similar to those prior to the pandemic. Even so, the 2020 peak reveals that, in crisis contexts, gender inequalities tend to resurface.
The employment situation
One of the most striking findings of the study is that the employment and educational status of the partner has a much greater influence on women than on men: when the partner is employed, men are more likely to work full-time, regardless of their partner's educational level. In contrast, in the same situation, women tend to be more likely to work part-time, even when they have a higher level of education than their partner.
This result partially contradicts human capital theory, which states that individuals with higher levels of education should focus on paid employment. In practice, this logic does not apply equally to men and women.
The study identifies a key scenario in which women achieve better employment outcomes: when there is educational homogamy at higher levels, meaning both partners have university degrees and are employed. In these households, women are more likely to work full-time, female underemployment and unemployment are reduced, even with young children, and therefore, the employment penalty is much lower.
According to Rodríguez Hernández, this is because education promotes more egalitarian gender ideologies and a fairer distribution of domestic work. “Empirical evidence shows that education is the main mechanism for reversing these inequalities,” she states.
Work has important implications for public policy design. Measures such as extending paternity leave, promoting teleworking, and offering flexible working hours can contribute to improving work-life balance and reducing gender gaps.
However, the researcher insists that these policies must be accompanied by a profound cultural shift. “Progress has been made in gender equality, but traditional ideologies persist in Spain and continue to influence decisions within the home,” he points out. Therefore, he emphasizes the need to invest in education from an early age, promoting values of equality that will have a real and lasting impact on the labor market and society.
Occupational segregation and the glass ceiling
Beyond underemployment and part-time work, the study also reveals persistent structural barriers that limit women's professional advancement: occupational segregation and the well-known glass ceiling. Although women's participation in the labor market has increased, their presence remains concentrated in certain traditionally female sectors and roles, such as education, healthcare, and administration. At the same time, access to decision-making, management, and leadership positions continues to be unequal, even when women are more highly educated.
This phenomenon, known as the glass ceiling, demonstrates that inequality is not only economic, but also structural and cultural. According to the researcher, “the difference in opportunities for advancement and access to leadership roles remains significant and reflects the persistent traditional ideologies that shape the organization of work.”.
Taken together, job segregation and barriers to advancement reinforce gender inequality in the labor market. While work-life balance policies and education can alleviate some female underemployment, the fight for true equality also requires transforming the organizational and cultural structures that limit women's access to positions of power.
The pandemic did not radically transform the Spanish labor market, but it did expose a persistent reality: in times of crisis, gender inequalities continue to resurface. José Enrique Rodríguez Hernández's study provides solid evidence that education and shared responsibility within couples are key to advancing towards true equality. As the researcher concludes, "The only way to reverse this situation is to continue investing in education and policies that facilitate work-life balance. Without this, gender gaps will continue to widen.".
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