Shecession, coined by C Nicole Mason, president and chief executive of the Institute for Women’s Policy Research, is a term meaning an economic crisis that disproportionally affects women.
On February 7, 2021, a New York Times article reports 4,637,000 payroll jobs lost by women in the US since March 2020 compared to 3,829,000 total payroll jobs lost by men.
The service sector, one of the hardest hit by COVID-19 restrictions, is primarily staffed by women. Pre-COVID wage disparity in those industries set the stage for economic uncertainty due to minor job disruptions. A nearly year-long pandemic has been devastating.
Non-service sector jobs haven’t fared much better. Women who already worked fewer hours for less money generally have shorter work histories and lower-ranking jobs than their male counterparts. This status leads to job eliminations and an unreconcilable opportunity gap.
Not to mention the added burden of child care for those who still hold jobs. Hispanic women experienced the steepest decline in unemployment, 21%, in this shecession.
When employment figures rebounded slightly in May 2020, they did so for every population except Black women, one in six of whom were unemployed that month, according to an analysis by the National Women’s Law Center.
The effects of this shecession will be long lasting. Bloomberg news predicts it will be decades before the nation can remedy the gaps in resumes and lack of gender diversity in the workforce. DWI is ready to help.
If you find yourself re-entering the workforce for any reason, our Get Placed services can get you back to work. For those who may have the ability to forgo an income during this time voluntarily or not, Get Trained can help you garner new skills for eventual re-entry into the workforce.
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