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Where Are The Women?!?!

First published on LinkedIn.

 
Poll question: Have events in the past year impacted your ability to succeed at work? 66% of respondents answered "Yes; due to some factors" while 34% respondents indicated "No, not impacted at all"
Have you been impacted? Which can you relate to? Options include "Yes, I have additional caregiver responsibilities;" "Yes, recent events have impacted me personally;" "Yes somewhat, my workplace has made decisions that inhibit my work ability;" "Yes somewhat, either my partner or I have had to reduce work hours;" and "No, my ability to succeed at or return to work has remained the same."

It’s been three (3) years since the mass exodus of 2+ million women in the workplace. We also saw a shift in the number of male workers at that time. However, as of 2022, male workers have regained ALL job losses. Yet, female workers are still short by more than 1.8 million jobs lost since February 2020. Where are they and why haven’t they returned? As corporate offices roll out "RTO" policies, the loss of women in the workplace is becoming more and more apparent.

And let’s not forget the multiple roles and identities that women carry. Whether they’re a working mom with a disability or a Black woman who also identifies as part of the LGBTQ+ community, there still is a cultural expectation that women should prioritize family and housework and not their careers. Some progress has been made, such as the recent Pay Transparency Law passed in California, but according to WEF, we still have 134 years until we close the global gender gap.

As we count down to International Women’s Day on March 8, I want to highlight the ups and downs that we’ve all faced. Issues that your female employees face should matter to everyone on the team, regardless of gender. When we leave women behind, we hurt everyone in the process, including our communities.

  • 2020 was the year that women left. Schools closed down and care for the elderly increased. During a time of exhausted working parents balancing working from home and taking care of the family, many women chose to become full-time caretakers. Women around the world lost 64 million jobs in 2020, a 5% loss compared to a 3.9% loss for men.

  • 2021 was the year that women resigned. Enter the "Great Resignation." Millions of people were quitting their jobs each month but women were quitting at a higher rate than men. This was due to an increase in their desire for flexible work options and better pay and growth opportunities.

  • 2022 was the year that women returned. And yet, compared to their male counterparts, female workers haven’t been able to regain job numbers prior to 2020. Some have returned to the workforce while others have only made a partial return.

So what does the year 2023 have in store for women?

If we think of the workplace as an ecosystem, a healthy environment is one beaming with diversity and a thriving environment is one where all living beings are interconnected. To draw a parallel to the workplace, a thriving team has Inclusion and Belonging embedded throughout its culture. Bringing women back helps with team morale and employee engagement, which ultimately supports greater innovation and higher revenues. There is no shortage of educated, skilled, and talented women for Corporate America.

What strides has your organization made to support and advance women in the workplace? I want to hear from you!

IT'S OFFICIAL!

It's my honor to announce that I will be a speaker at SXSW in March 2023 in Austin, TX. My topic will be 'Driving Diversity Forward with Data'. Tickets are available now.


I've also been selected to be featured as part of the 2023 bookstore showcase!! Find me hosting a book signing at the Austin Convention Center room 10C on Level 3 on March 14, 2023, from 1:00pm - 1:30 PM Central. Hope to see you there!

MARCH OBSERVANCES:

Until next month... Be well and stay safe & healthy!

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