Today’s jobs data drop on the eve of the nation’s 250th birthday – and they are abysmal. The economy gained a mere 57,000 jobs in June and over the last year we’ve only added an average of 36,000 jobs a month. Women added 101,000 jobs last month, meaning men lost 44,000 jobs, yet the share of women who are working is at its lowest level in more than four years. Workers are remaining unemployed for longer than they were just a year ago. These data – coming on the heels of yet another banner day in the stock market – show that workers have a long way to go until they have an economy that works for them, rather than just the powerful few.
This is not to say women have not made progress. Today, women hold half of the jobs in the economy – a figure that seemed impossible not too long ago. Data from the last nearly eight decades show that women’s labor force participation has grown dramatically, largely as a result of policy victories that have significantly reshaped the economy to create opportunities for women. These gains reflect many hard fought victories over the years, victories often led by women of color.
But despite all this progress, we still have a long way to go. Women’s jobs still pay less than jobs held by men, especially when they are held by women of color and disabled women. Women participate in the economy at lower rates than some of our partner countries, costing families and the economy trillions. Recent declines in the share of mothers of young children who are working signal an economy increasingly hostile to caregivers – a trend that especially harms women, who do more than 60 percent of the nation’s unpaid care work. Black women’s unemployment rate has been higher than white women’s rate every single month for as long as we’ve collected these data – more than 50 years.
Women’s progress has been driven by changing systems to redesign our economy to work for women instead of the wealthy few. These changes not only support women, but the country overall. But women’s hard-fought gains are being rolled back by the current administration, which is dismantling women’s health care access, including abortion access; undermining critical diversity, equity and inclusion programs; undercutting essential workplace protections for women; and more.
Rather than going backwards, policymakers should be driving towards an economy that works for all workers, including women. This means ensuring people are fairly paid at work and are protected from discrimination and harassment. It means passing legislation to support unpaid care responsibilities like paid leave and paid sick days, so workers don’t have to choose between a paycheck and being there for their loved ones. It means ensuring the economy works for workers, instead of being designed to support the powerful few.
As we look to the next 250 years, we know progress is possible – because we have made it happen. Now that’s worth celebrating.