Drawing on unique (bi)monthly panel data (IAB-HOPP) that span the immediate post-lockdown months of June to August 2020 and extend through the period before the second lockdown in January/February 2021, we reevaluate competing claims about whether the Covid-19 crisis in Germany expanded or narrowed gender disparities in parental childcare. Using the pre-pandemic allocation as a baseline, we focus on developments over time rather than isolated moments. The evidence points to a modest early move toward a more balanced childcare split, but this trend weakened in the following months. Given the comparatively “traditional’’ childcare distribution before Covid-19, the lockdown shock proved far from sufficient to equalize responsibilities. Subgroup analyses based on work conditions specific to the lockdown reveal that the observed adjustments were mainly driven by mothers with comparatively strong labor market ties who were unable to work remotely. Fathers’ work settings, by contrast, appear largely irrelevant. We infer that the shift stemmed from short-term necessity instead of newfound opportunity, suggesting it would diminish as pressures ease. Moreover, changes were visible only when fathers had previously taken part in childcare to some degree, underscoring the importance of initial household arrangements.
