Gender, Care, and Inequality: Rethinking Social Work Practices in Post-Pandemic Societies

Abstract

Introduction: The COVID-19 crisis highlighted pre-existing gender inequalities and revealed the structural crisis of care. This event exposed an unsustainable system that promotes the unpaid work of women, overwhelms households, and leads to the overexploitation of informal support networks. Consequently, social work faces barriers in addressing a problem of a collective nature. Methodology: This article was developed based on a narrative documentary review. Results: This study demonstrates the need to reorient the profession's paradigm towards a community vision, adopting a gender perspective. This shift entails moving away from a welfare model to focus on positioning care as a central point of the public agenda. Conclusions: Therefore, a sustainable society requires the construction of public care systems that integrate and collaborate with community solidarity networks. Thus, post-pandemic social work must promote the development of an ethic that socially organizes care work and recognizes it as a fundamental cornerstone for social justice and the sustainability of life.