Economic Security, Mobility and Equity (ESME)
Whether paid or unpaid, women’s work is crucial for their families’ economic security and well-being. Greater gender equality in paid and unpaid work will reduce poverty and improve economic growth and prosperity; persistent inequity in employment and family work is costing all of us. Women are held back by the undervaluation of historically female work, workplaces designed as if workers had no family responsibilities, and a broken-down work-family infrastructure.
IWPR’s ESME program highlights the extent of pay inequalities, and the role played by stark occupational segregation in perpetuating unequal pay. We conduct research and analysis on women’s labor force participation and employment trends; workforce development, non-traditional employment, and apprenticeships; the impact of sex discrimination and harassment on women’s career advancement and mobility; the gender pay gap and pay inequity across race and ethnicity; work-family policies and employer practices; the and the impact of automation and technological advances on women workers.
We work with policymakers, employers, advocates, and practitioners to identify promising practices and policy solutions.
Geographic Mobility, Gender, and the Future of Work
Geographically, economic opportunity is unequally distributed across the United States. A disproportionate share of all private-sector jobs—one in five—are located in just four metropolitan areas: New York, San Francisco, Chicago, and Seattle.
Gender Inequality, Work Hours, and the Future of Work
Gender differences in paid and unpaid time at work are an important aspect of gender inequality. Women tend to spend more time on unpaid household and family care work, and men spend more time in paid work. This unequal distribution of time creates barriers to women’s advancement at work and reduces women’s economic security.
Growing the Numbers of Women in the Trades: Building Equity and Inclusion through Pre-Apprenticeship Programs
Greater access to apprenticeships in the skilled trades can help women achieve economic security and fill predicted skills shortages in construction. The construction trades provide good careers with family sustaining earnings.
Women’s Median Earnings as a Percent of Men’s, 1985-2018 (Full-time, Year-Round Workers) with Projections for Pay Equity, by Race/Ethnicity
Source: IWPR analysis of data from P-38 Historical Income Tables, U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey, Annual Social and Economic Supplements. <http://www.census.gov/data/tables/time-series/demo/income-poverty/historical-income-people.html> (accessed November 4, 2019). Notes: Estimates presented for All Women are based on the earnings ratio for full-time, year-round workers between all [...]
Pregnancy and Maternity Leave in the Trades: Good Practices for Apprentices
DOWNLOAD REPORT The physically strenuous work means that often it is not safe for pregnant women to work to the end of their pregnancy. While under the Pregnancy Discrimination Act it is illegal for employers to fire someone because she is pregnant, or [...]
Valuing Good Health in Massachusetts: The Costs and Benefits of Earned Sick Days
Policymakers across the country are increasingly interested in ensuring that workers can earn paid time off to use when they are sick. In addition to concerns about workers’ ability to respond to their own health needs, there is growing recognition that, with so many dual-earner and single-parent families, family members’ health needs also sometimes require workers to take time off from their jobs. Allowing workers with contagious illnesses to avoid unnecessary contact with co-workers and customers has important public health benefits.
