'Pink-collar recession': how the Covid-19 crisis could set back a generation of women

The unique nature of the pandemic means the economic downturn could impact women for decades

• Full Story: How the coronavirus is affecting women's work in Australia

Rebecca Wilkie is used to running a budget. The single mother of two daughters knows what it is to keep one eye on the bank balance. After being stood down as a full-time Qantas flight attendant at the end of March, however, the budget is tighter still. Life was a struggle for us before the pandemic, to be honest," she says.

She is managing. But catching up on the mortgage payments after the initial relief ends, and paying for the greater utility bills when they come through, worry her. She's hoping, and expecting, that after 18 years at the airline, a job will be waiting for her once jobkeeper stops and the recovery begins.

Related: Despite the horror of Australia's unemployment numbers, we haven't reached the bottom yet | Greg Jericho

Not only have women lost their jobs, they have lost the low level of income they did have

Women are much more vulnerable as a group because they are disproportionately employed in industries that will face ongoing challenges