Table 3.
Differences in predicted hours on weekday workdays for mothers and fathers in dual-earner couples with children under age 13 during the COVID-19 pandemic by couple’s joint work location
| Paid Work | Total Childcare | Primary Childcare | Secondary Childcare | Face time with Children | Household Production | Total Work | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| One parent WFH | |||||||
| Fathers | −0.01 (0.53) | 3.44*** (1.24) | 0.37 (0.33) | 3.06*** (1.18) | 1.42** (0.70) | 0.81** (0.36) | 0.86* (0.49) |
| Mothers | −1.11*** (0.41) | 5.23*** (0.89) | 0.79** (0.36) | 4.44*** (0.90) | 2.49*** (0.63) | 0.54* (0.28) | 0.87** (0.42) |
| Mothers – Fathers | −1.10* (0.63) | 1.79 (1.44) | 0.41 (0.50) | 1.38 (1.35) | 1.06 (0.96) | −0.27 (0.43) | 0.01 (0.63) |
| Both parents WFH | |||||||
| Fathers | −0.19 (0.48) | 2.09** (0.85) | 0.28 (0.28) | 1.81** (0.83) | 1.07* (0.55) | 0.28 (0.30) | 0.47 (0.46) |
| Mothers | 0.04 (0.50) | 3.23*** (1.01) | 0.46 (0.40) | 2.77*** (1.01) | 1.46** (0.74) | 0.20 (0.36) | 0.40 (0.49) |
| Mothers – Fathers | 0.23 (0.58) | 1.14 (0.99) | 0.18 (0.37) | 0.96 (1.01) | 0.39 (0.73) | −0.09 (0.36) | −0.07 (0.51) |
| Both – One WFH | |||||||
| Fathers | −0.19 (0.60) | −1.34 (1.28) | −0.09 (0.39) | −1.25 (1.21) | −0.35 (0.82) | −0.52 (0.36) | −0.39 (0.61) |
| Mothers | 1.15** (0.54) | −1.99 (1.26) | −0.32 (0.45) | −1.67 (1.23) | −1.03 (0.92) | −0.34 (0.41) | −0.47 (0.52) |
N = 728. Differences for one parent WFH and both parents WFH are relative to both parents working away from home. The COVID-19 sample includes diaries between May 10, 2020 and December 2021. ATUS final weights reweighted separately for equal-day-of-the-week representation by gender for our sample are used. Standard errors are generated using ATUS replicate weights. WFH is defined as working from home at least 1 h on the diary day for the respondent. Partner WFH is based on the predicted probability of working from home. Time-use predictions are based on setting partner WFH = 0.75 for WFH and = 0 for WAFH. We include indicators for each month of the pandemic. See Table 2 for other control variables. Significance levels: *p < 0.10, **p < 0.05, ***p < 0.01. Source: Authors’ calculations based on the American Time Use Survey and Current Population Survey COVID-19 data