Economic Security, Mobility and Equity (ESME)2022-03-23T13:22:56-05:00

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.

Building the Future
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. It provides a blueprint for a gender-equitable recovery that is not only about meeting the immediate economic needs of women and families, but lays out a long-term strategy for creating stronger systems and institutions that reflect the experiences and contributions of women.

Breadwinner Mothers
Holding Up Half the Sky: Mothers as Workers, Primary Caregivers, & Breadwinners During COVID-19

The loss of jobs in sectors dominated by women will have a devastating impact of families, especially those headed by single mothers or where women are the primary or co-breadwinner. One in two of more than 30 million families in the U.S. with children under the age of 18 have a breadwinner mother, who contributes at least 40 percent of the earnings to the household.

Gender Wage Gap
The Gender Wage Gap: 2019 Earnings Differences by Race and Ethnicity

The gender wage gap in weekly earnings for full-time workers in the United States narrowed marginally between 2018 and 2019. In 2019, the ratio of women’s to men’s median weekly full-time earnings was 81.5 percent, leaving a wage gap of 18.5 percent.

Future of Work
The Future of Care Work: Improving the Quality of America’s Fastest-Growing Jobs

Paid adult care work jobs are expected to increase substantially in the coming years, due to both an aging population and a comparatively low risk of automation for many of these jobs. These jobs, however, are among the lowest quality occupations in the U.S. labor market, with paid adult care workers facing low earnings, limited access to benefits, high rates of injury on the job, and scheduling unpredictability.

previous arrowprevious arrow
next arrownext arrow
Search
Generic filters

IWPR wins $1.2 Million Competitive Research Grant from RWJF

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE December 6, 2022 Contact: Carolina Espinoza | media@iwpr.org | IWPR Receives $1.2 Million Competitive Research Grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Urban Institute to establish new Research and Policy Hub Washington, D.C. - The Institute for Women’s [...]

By |December 6, 2022|

The Gender Pay Gap, 1985 to 2021—with Forecast for Achieving Pay Equity, by Race and Ethnicity

Download Quick Figure   If progress continues at the same rate as it has since 1985, it will take until almost another 200 years – until 2210 – for Hispanic or Latina women to reach pay equity with White men, and for Black women [...]

By |December 6, 2022|

IWPR Grows its Staff and Impact, Building on Major Accomplishments this Year

Stephanie Osborn joins the Institute for Women’s Policy Research as its incoming Chief Operating Officer. Ms. Osborn joins IWPR from the National League of Cities where she served in a similar capacity. She is joined by a talented slate of new researchers with deep content [...]

By |December 5, 2022|
Go to Top