Flexible Work Plans

Ohioline Fact Sheet, The She-cession: How the Pandemic Forced Women from the Workplace and How Employers Can Respond

Meghan Thoreau, Extension Educator, Community Development, Ohio State University Extension, Pickaway County

 

Viewpoint from behind woman as she stares up at an exit sign.

Figure 1. The pandemic has had disproportionate impacts on working women’s careers. Photo by Adobe Spark.

COVID-19 has altered the lives of most Americans, but changes at home and work have affected working women significantly, particularly working women of color.

Even before COVID, women earned less, saved less, had less access to financial services and products, and had non-linear career trajectories. Furthermore, women lived longer than men. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, women’s life expectancy is to reach 87.3 years by 2060, compared with 83.9 years for men (Medina, Sabo, and Vespa 2020). Since COVID-19, women face additional disproportional impacts from the pandemic-induced recession. The pandemic’s effect on women has been termed a “she-cession,” by C. Nicole Mason, a women’s policy researcher and economist, to describe the disproportionate impacts the pandemic has had on working women’s careers (Andrews 2020).

Our country has undergone an initial mass exodus of more than 20 million women from the workforce at the beginning of the pandemic (Chiappa 2021). While many women eventually returned to work, a huge number left their careers to fill ongoing gaps in childcare and to help with their children’s remote learning. January’s 2021 jobs reports showed that 2.5 million women ultimately exited the workforce compared to 1.8 million men (Rogers 2021). This imbalance raises several questions:

  • Whose professional time do we value most?
  • Who is dispensable?
  • How can employers support and retain women in the workplace?

This fact sheet explores answers to these questions by highlighting some of the growing inequities of working women, especially after the onset of COVID-19. It also presents actionable solutions where employers can start designing their working environments and adjusting employee policies to support women proactively and tangibly in the workplace. “Equality for women is progress for all” (Unicef 2014). Click below to read the full fact sheet.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

https://ohioline.osu.edu/factsheet/cdfs-4110

 

References

Andrews, Audrey. 2020. “The Coronavirus Recession Is a ‘She-cession.’” Press Hits, Institute for Women’s Policy Research. May 15, 2020.
iwpr.org/media/press-hits/the-coronavirus-recession-is-a-she-cession/.

Medina, Lauren, Shannon Sabo, and Johathan Vespa. 2020. Living Longer: Historical and Projected Life Expectancy in the United States, 1960 to 2060. Washington D.C., U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. Census Bureau. PDF.
census.gov/content/dam/Census/library/publications/2020/demo/p25-1145.pdf.

Chiappa, Claudia. 2021. “The Pandemic Forced Millions of Women Out of the Workforce—Many Have Not Returned.” Daily Hampshire Gazette. November 8, 2021.
gazettenet.com/Gender-disparity-in-the-pandemic-43339268.

Rogers, Katie. 2021. “2.5 Million Women Left the Workforce During the Pandemic. Kamala Harris Sees a ‘National Emergency.” The New York Times, The Indian Express (website). February 19, 2021.
indianexpress.com/article/world/kamala-harris-covid-pandemic-women-workforce-7195552/.

Unicef. 2014. Equality for Women Is Progress for All. March 8, 2014.
unicef.org/turkey/en/press-releases/equality-women-progress-all.

* Full reference list in the fact sheet.

Ohio Christian University and Pickaway ESC Summit STEM, Session Overviews

Ohio Christian University and Pickaway ESC Summit on November 6, 2021  

Session 1: Learn about OSU Extension’s local hands-on informal STEM learning opportunities and youth career exploration programming in Pickaway County, Hands-on STEM Learning & Career Exploration Programming:

The goal of the Community Development STEM programs is to promote student engagement and interest in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) fields. participants are engaging in hands-on STEM acNviNes and career exploration with visiting professionals and educators from the community and The Ohio State University. Select programs also involve high school mentor students that assist with program acNviNes while themselves gaining both soX and technical skills, leadership, community service, and college/career exploration opportunities.

Session 2: OSU Extension: Pickaway County K-12 Teacher/Student PercepKons: Virtual/Hybrid Learning Environments Preliminary Results, Preliminary Results K-12 Virtual Hybrid Learning Study:

Prezi Presentation: www.go.osu.edu/remotelearningstudy

The COVID-19 pandemic has also forced educators to reevaluate their programming formats and plan and create more virtual learning and teaching lessons for the current 2020/21 school year forward. The study is led by me, Meghan Thoreau, OSU Extension Educator 3, M.R.P. at OSU Extension, Community Development & STEM, College of Food, Agricultural, & Environmental Sciences. The purpose of the study is to measure the experiences of K-12 teachers and 6-12th grade students in virtual and/or hybrid learning environments, to measure teacher perceptions and attitudes of virtual and hybrid learning strategies, and to identify challenges and opportunities of virtual and hybrid learning environments compared to in-person instruction. This session will share out preliminary results of the action research study currently under analysis.

MEGHAN THOREAU, OSU Extension Educator with a unique mix of skills and experience in construction management, planning, and educational outreach and programming. Meghan focuses on preparing Pickaway County youth for STEM careers. She works collaboratively with a team of Extension professionals, volunteers, campus collaborators, and community partners to provide leadership for the development, production, and evaluation of educational programs and applied research to foster STEM educational opportunities that increase career a\ainment in STEM fields. Email: thoreau.1@osu.edu. 

The Pandemic is forcing Women from the Workforce. Can Extension’s Workforce Development Programs Respond?

By: Meghan Thoreau, OSU Extension Educator

This poster presentation, ‘The Pandemic is forcing Women from the Workforce and Can Extension’s Workforce Development Programs Respond?’ was presented at the 2021 Virtual National Association of Community Development Extension Professionals (NACDEP) National Conference on May 18, 2021. There were three versions created and provided below: 1) a video image-based poster presentation, 2) an online word-based poster presentation, and 3) a PDF word-based poster presentation.

Video Presentation (duration 13:40)

 

The Pandemic is forcing Women from the Workforce and Can Extension’s Workforce Development Programs Respond? (PDF version)