COVID 19 and Recovery Response
In these unprecedented times, the Institute for Women’s Policy Research (IWPR) is committed to communicating and addressing the challenges women are facing. IWPR’s new research outlines how policymakers can address the immediate and long term needs of women, their families, and their communities in policy responses to the pandemic.
Congress Considers a Minimum Wage Boost – What the Fight for 15 Means for Women
Big things are happening for the minimum wage. The Raise the Wage Act, which includes a $15 minimum wage and full elimination of the subminimum wage for tipped workers, disabled workers, and youth continues to move through Congress. If passed in the House of Representatives, the bill would move to the Senate, where the Senate Parliamentarian will decide if the Raise the Wage Act will remain a part Biden’s existing COVID relief plan. If it does not move forward with [...]
Working Moms are Exhausted – Here’s How We Can Support Them
Working mothers have searched for an equilibrium between caretaking and job responsibilities for far too long. At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, mothers had to figure out how to parent, teach, and do the job they were paid to do – all while under the financial and emotional stress of a pandemic. Many women have struggled with the extra burdens, but these strains are not something that can be relieved by mothers alone. The exhaustion and burnout that women [...]
What the Child Tax Credit Bill Could Mean for Working Moms
The COVID-19 pandemic and resulting school and care center closures compounded a child care crisis already pushing working mothers to the brink. On Monday, February 8, the Biden administration unveiled the Child Tax Credit Bill to provide economic relief for working parents and families. The plan promises at least $3000 per child over the course of the year and will be presented to the House Ways and Means Committee over the coming weeks. The full benefit would be available to [...]
Building a Better Post-COVID Future for Women in New Orleans
The coronavirus pandemic has had a devastating impact on women’s employment across the nation, and perhaps nowhere more than the city of New Orleans, a metropolitan area heavily dependent on hospitality and tourism dollars that have all but vanished during the past year. A new study by Chandra Childers, a Study Director at the Institute for Women’s Policy Research, looks at the potential opportunities for women who have lost jobs during the pandemic to find new opportunities in skilled trade [...]
What it means to return to a “pre-pandemic” economy
By Kimberly Adams A new report from the Congressional Budget Office predicts gross domestic product could return to pre-pandemic levels as early as mid-2021, even without additional federal aid. The CBO said the labor market will take longer to reach its pre-pandemic size — probably not until 2024. But let’s examine that baseline concept: the idea of getting back to the “pre-pandemic” economy. Even if the numbers return to where they once were, the economy is probably going to look [...]
The pandemic has derailed women’s careers and livelihoods. Is America giving up on them?
By Maria Aspan and Emma Hinchliffe In early 2020, just before the first U.S. patient was diagnosed with COVID-19, women crossed a major employment milestone. The labor market was booming. Health care, education, and other service sectors largely staffed by female workers were racing to hire more people. And for a few shining months in early 2020, government data showed that women outnumbered men in the U.S. paid workforce. Then “the whole house burned down,” says Michael Madowitz, a labor [...]