The COVID-19 pandemic was not merely a health crisis. Its effects were also felt in the organisation of work and family life, exacerbating pre-existing social inequalities. Whilst some people were able to adapt to working from home and maintain a degree of family stability, others faced serious difficulties in coping with the demands of work and family care. Against this backdrop, the following question arises: How were socio-economic disparities linked to well-being, and what role did work-family-life balance play in this relationship during the pandemic?
A study recently published in the International Journal of Intercultural Relations addressed this issue by analysing the experiences of nearly two thousand workers in Chile during the third wave of the pandemic. This study was conducted by Ginés Navarro-Carrillo, a researcher at the Mind, Brain and Behavior Research Center (CIMCYC) at the University of Granada, in collaboration with researcher Juan Carlos Oyanedel from Andrés Bello University (Chile). These researchers examined various measures of well-being—such as satisfaction with life, work or family—and their connection to socioeconomic status and the conflict between the work and family spheres.
Inequality, resources and well-being
Chile provides an ideal context for this analysis. As well as being one of the countries with the most unequal income distribution in the world, it also exhibited significant disparities in terms of infection rates and mortality during the COVID-19 pandemic. In such a crisis context, having greater financial resources could enable more effective responses to work and family demands.
Many studies have shown that a higher socioeconomic status is associated with higher levels of well-being. However, socioeconomic status is not a single factor, as it encompasses aspects as diverse as income, level of education, and occupation. One of the main contributions of this research is to examine these dimensions separately, rather than combining them into a single indicator.
The work-family conflict as a key factor
The study’s findings revealed a clear pattern: among the various indicators of socioeconomic status, income was the most significant determinant of well-being. Workers on lower incomes reported lower life satisfaction, poorer personal well-being and lower levels of satisfaction with both their work and family life.
However, the key finding of this research concerns the role of work-family conflict (interference from work in family life and from family life in work). Specifically, the researchers showed that lower-income workers experienced higher levels of interference from both work in family life and from family life in work, with these higher levels of conflict resulting in poorer well-being.
These findings suggest that when financial resources are limited, it is more difficult to manage work and family demands without them coming into conflict. This conflict between work and family life may help to explain why lower-income workers experienced lower levels of well-being during the pandemic crisis.
Why are these findings important?
These results have significant implications at both the social and political levels. On the one hand, the findings highlight the particular vulnerability of people on lower incomes in times of crisis, particularly in societies with high levels of inequality. On the other hand, the authors stress the need to implement measures that facilitate a work-family balance, as well as to ensure sufficient financial support for the most vulnerable households. These strategies can help reduce the detrimental effects of future crises on the well-being of workers.
Reference
Navarro-Carrillo, G., & Oyanedel, J. C. (2025). Socioeconomic status, work-family conflict, and employee well-being in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 106, 102176. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijintrel.2025.102176
Contacto at the CIMCYC
Ginés Navarro-Carrillo (@email)