Women in the Workforce: Current Trends

I recently read an article in The Wall Street Journal, Women’s Return to the Workforce Piles Momentum on a Hot Economy. As I read it, I kept thinking about my wife, with whom I have the privilege of raising six children. She makes my day job possible, because she works ceaselessly -- with faith, love, and patience -- to ensure our half-dozen children get everything they need. What my wife does for our family every day is work, as well as fulfill a vocation for her and serve as an inspiration to me. The WSJ article was interesting because it highlighted the return of women to the workplace outside of the home, with significant economic implications.

As the article written in March reveals,

[w]omen have gained more jobs than men for four straight months, including in January’s hiring surge, pushing them to hold more than 49.8% of all nonfarm jobs. Female workers last edged higher than men on U.S. payrolls in late 2019, before the pandemic sent nearly 12 million women out of jobs, compared with 10 million men.  

These trends are worth digesting. More reading on the topic turned up a March Washington Post piece, Single women take an outsize role in the workforce — and the economy. From their reporting:

Single women — whether divorced, separated or never married — are more likely to be working than married women. The share of never-married women who are working or looking for work has risen nearly two percentage points in the past decade, even as the overall labor force participation rate has declined.

But their lower wages mean they have less spending power.

Also worth noting from the article: 52 percent of American women are unmarried, and the number of single-women households is rising fast. The Pew Research Center adds another dimension to understanding the changing role of women in the workforce. As Pew shared in September 2022, “[w]omen have overtaken men and now account for more than half (50.7%) of the college-educated labor force in the United States, according to a Pew Research Center analysis of government data.”

In his apostolic letter, Mulieris Dignitatem (On The Dignity and Vocation Of Women), Pope St. John Paul II wrote,

[t]he Church gives thanks for all the manifestations of the feminine "genius" which have appeared in the course of history, in the midst of all peoples and nations; she gives thanks for all the charisms which the Holy Spirit distributes to women in the history of the People of God, for all the victories which she owes to their faith, hope and charity: she gives thanks for all the fruits of feminine holiness.

As Catholics and business leaders, we must put at the forefront our gratitude for the gifts possessed by women, be conscious of the challenges many women face in the workplace, pay just wages, and be aware of workplace and economic trends that impact women. We must cultivate respect and admiration for women whose work is in the home, and for those who work outside the home. As women are increasingly returning to workplaces outside the home, Catholic business leaders must lead the way in acknowledging the contributions of women wherever they are working, and in helping them to fulfill their vocations.