COVID-19 and Recovery Response
As the pandemic enters its third year and the nation turns to recovery, the Institute for Women’s Policy Research is committed to amplifying and addressing the challenges women face. IWPR’s new research provides insights and recommendations for policymakers to help meet the urgent and long-term needs of women, their families, and their communities.
Child Care Key for Equitable Economic Recovery
By Eric Galatas LINCOLN, Neb. -- Since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, women in Nebraska and across the U.S. have left the workforce in unprecedented numbers. And a new report suggests a full economic recovery will not be possible unless steps are taken to help women get back on the job. Nicole Mason, president and CEO of the Institute for Women's Policy Research, said the lack of access to child care has forced women to choose between their families' [...]
Melinda Gates Believes the United States Needs a Child Care Infrastructure. We Do Too.
The coronavirus has laid bare what was painfully clear to many families already: The caregiving system in the United States is broken, and it is women who are paying the price. - Melinda Gates In yesterday's Washington Post op-ed, Melinda Gates offered a clear call to action: provide federal funding to rebuild child care infrastructure and expand work supports including paid leave and Medicare to promote economic security for women and working families. These critical policies would have facilitated [...]
Women’s Share of Unemployment Insurance Claimants varies Strongly Across States
In 42 of 50 states and DC, women were the majority of unemployment insurance claimants. A third of all unemployed women, and four in ten Latinas, have been out of work for more than 26 weeks. The receipt of unemployment benefits, including those provided under the CARES Act, substantially reduces but do not eliminate the odds of hunger or foreclosure threats for women and their families.
Congress needs to act now—women and families risk devastation after December 26 expiry of CARES Act benefits
The CARES Act, passed in March 2020, proved to be a lifeline for many women and their families during the COVID-19 pandemic. The benefits introduced by the CARES Act, including the $600 weekly federal unemployment benefit, lifted more than 18 million individuals out of poverty in April, a majority of whom were women. Women outnumber men among state unemployment insurance claimants both nationally and in the large majority of the states. By September, after the weekly federal benefit ended, the [...]
Build(ing) the Future: Bold Policies for a Gender-Equitable Recovery
This report, Build(ing) the Future: Bold Policies for a Gender-Equitable Recovery, provides a framework for shared prosperity and equitable economic recovery. It examines the impact of the economic crisis and recession on working women, their families, and communities.
“I experienced unpredictability because I was working full-time and no longer had child care”
"I experienced unpredictability because I was working full-time and no longer had child care"
