#InvestEquitably Newsletter (03.25.20)
As Katica Roy recently wrote in Fast Company, perhaps the greatest economic lesson the U.S. will glean from this global pandemic is not only that slow-acting fiscal policy leaves the vulnerable more vulnerable; it’s also that any fiscal policy, slow-acting or not, without an #InvestEquitably lens leaves women to bear the brunt of a global health or financial crisis.
The pandemic has highlighted the structural inequalities of U.S. society - particularly around job security, pay, sick leave, family leave, housework, and caregiving - in a way that little else could. The data speaks for itself:
American women are more likely to be low-wage and part-time workers than men. In fact, 62% of minimum-wage and lower-wage workers are female. These employees face a greater risk of income loss when their workplaces - e.g. restaurants, stores, hotels, and airports - shut down to contain the spread of the virus.
Over 70% of U.S. households with children rely on women’s income for their economic well-being. Furthermore, 40% of U.S. households depend on a female breadwinner to put food on the table.
Thanks to the gender pay gap, women had less income before the virus began wreaking havoc on the economy. It’s one reason why women and children make up 70% of our nation’s poor. It’s also why women are twice as likely to live in poverty during retirement than men.
The U.S. is one of two OECD countries that does not guarantee paid sick leave. (The other OECD country that doesn't guarantee paid sick leave is South Korea, but we won't get into the disparity in COVID responses in this newsletter!).
Beyond paid sick leave, there is a lack of paid caregiver policies; only 16% of private-industry employees have access to paid caregiver leave.
On average, American women put in 241 minutes of housework (cooking, cleaning, caregiving) every day, compared to 145 minutes per day by men.
We can - and we must - do better. We don't have to accept any of the above as the status quo. The global pandemic may have wreaked havoc on the world as we know it, but in that we recognize an unprecedented opportunity to rebuild for better. Female-dominated professions - roles such as teachers, healthcare workers, daycare providers, and domestic workers - are chronically under-valued and under-paid. Let's start there, and use and insist on an #InvestEquitably lens to correct for, and properly codify, all the deeply unfair structural inequalities that have been so starkly highlighted.
We are resilient, and we will rebuild. For now, it's on us to ensure that we care for ourselves, our loved ones, and our communities in this time of need. Let's take the time we need now, but let's also not lose sight of our responsibility to #InvestEquitably and correct the inequalities that are currently baked into our economic and social system.