As a result of the changes in employment and lifestyle patterns, care provision—including care for the elderly, care for small children, or personal support for those in difficult circumstances—is being increasingly outsourced and redistributed between men and women. Nursing home and mobile care services are increasingly replacing informal support provided by relatives; meanwhile, young children are no longer exclusively cared for by their mothers, but also by crèches and increasingly by fathers.

The Work and Care research group analyzes the effects of these changes on social inequalities in several methodologically and thematically linked research projects. The group examines the following research questions: Why is pay for social service work still low despite the high demand for caregivers? How can men and women balance work and family successfully? What obstacles must be overcome to ensure that the outsourcing of care and support tasks reduces gender inequalities instead of shifting them from one population group to another?

The WZB Work and Care research group is headed by Lena Hipp.