Prolonged Level 4 Social Distancing, Parents Struggling with Childcare at Home

Photo by Asia Economy DB

As the spread of COVID-19 continues and social distancing Level 4 measures remain in place, parents are experiencing ongoing 'childcare struggles.'

Baek Sohyun (36), who is raising an elementary school daughter and a three-year-old son, said, "The COVID-19 situation has worsened and the school vacation overlapped, making this summer very difficult." She added, "Since we cannot go to kids' cafes or outdoor places, the children who have to stay indoors are becoming increasingly stressed." Baek said, "If the COVID-19 situation continues like this, it won't be COVID-19 but childcare stress that will send me to the hospital."

Three weeks have passed since social distancing Level 4 was implemented, and parents' childcare difficulties are growing. The government raised the social distancing level to 4 in the metropolitan area on the 12th of last month, and it is scheduled to end on the 8th, but infectious disease experts believe that to curb the spread, an extension of Level 4 in the metropolitan area as well as stronger additional quarantine measures are necessary. Daycare centers in the metropolitan area have been completely closed, followed by kindergartens and elementary schools starting their vacations. Since most of this vacation and holiday period must be spent 'staying at home,' parents' worries are increasing.

Dual-income families sometimes have to spend their entire summer vacation on childcare. Kim Donghyun (34), an office worker with a four-year-old daughter, said, "Although emergency childcare systems are operated at daycare centers, because many children gather, there is concern about COVID-19 infection, so I entrusted my child to my parents." He added, "During the summer vacation, I plan to spend time at home with my child." Emergency childcare is a mandatory service that each daycare center must provide during closure periods for families who have difficulty providing care at home.

According to the Center for Transnational Migration and Social Inclusion (CTMS) at Seoul National University, since the spread of COVID-19, the average weekday childcare time for mothers has increased by 14 hours and 37 minutes for full-time homemakers and by 5 hours and 18 minutes for dual-income families. Fathers' childcare burden has also increased by 2 to 3 hours on average weekdays. This survey was conducted with 2,016 parents nationwide who have children aged 0 to 12. As a result, 52.4% of working mothers said they are considering quitting their jobs due to childcare burdens. Among fathers, one in three (33.4%) also considered quitting their jobs. In fact, 20.2% of working mothers who responded to the survey quit their jobs after COVID-19, and among them, 49.2% answered that it was 'to care for their children.' Additionally, 32.2% of mothers and 19.6% of fathers responded that they would take a leave of absence if COVID-19 continues longer.