PRESS STATEMENT Christiane Benner on the latest federal and state COVID-19 decisions

Christiane Benner: “If daycare centers and schools remain closed for weeks to come, this will place an ever-greater burden on parents. We therefore welcome the improvements to sick child benefits that have now been approved, but they are not sufficient in the long term. Our employee survey also confirms this. 71 percent of respondents who cared for their children at home during the first lockdown said they needed better wage replacement benefits. The wage replacement benefits for parents under the Infection Protection Act must be permanently improved: We need higher relief payments, and employees who work from home must be granted access to these benefits. In addition, the right to time off must be guaranteed.

The short- and medium-term societal consequences for the division of labor and caregiving responsibilities between mothers and fathers should also be kept in mind as a matter of urgency. Various studies show just how much the pandemic has exacerbated gender inequality in this area. We must not provide yet another opening for this dangerous trend by failing to offer adequate support to parents providing care. The repercussions will not only be felt by women; they will also backfire on society.”

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