Economic Security, Mobility and Equity (ESME)

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.

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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.

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Comparing the Living Standards of Husbands and Wives: In and Out of Marriage
Comparing the Living Standards of Husbands and Wives: In and Out of Marriage

Comparing the Living Standards of Husbands and Wives: In and Out of Marriage

This paper argues that analyzing the livings standards of husbands and wives within families is a critical challenge for researchers concerned with the valid measurement of family well-being.

By IWPR|March 29, 1989|

High Skill and Low Pay: The Economics of Child Care Work
High Skill and Low Pay: The Economics of Child Care Work

High Skill and Low Pay: The Economics of Child Care Work

In the midst of a debate over the cost and quality of child care and the appropriate public role in its provision, this paper documents the current situation of child care workers.

By Heidi Hartmann and Diana Pierce|January 1, 1989|

Child Care Worker’s Salaries
Child Care Worker’s Salaries

Child Care Worker’s Salaries

Child care workers salaries are shockingly low.

By Heidi Hartmann and Diana Pierce|January 1, 1989|

Feminism vs Familism: Research and Policy for the 1990’s
Feminism vs Familism: Research and Policy for the 1990’s

Feminism vs Familism: Research and Policy for the 1990’s

As we will see these inequalities in gender, race or class are often either masked or are seen as natural or functional in family research and policymaking.

By Roberta Spalter-Roth|November 16, 1988|