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Women's Workforce Equality Comes at a Price

By Kevin Spak, Newser Staff

Posted Feb 13, 2009 10:09 AM CST

(Newser) – At long last, women hold more than 49% of American jobs in this country, and 50% is in reach. But hold the confetti, writes Ellen Goodman of the Boston Globe. It's happening "because men are losing their jobs even faster than women." Last year, men took home eight of every 10 pink slips, jacking their unemployment rate to 7.6%, compared to 6.2% for women.

"This dubious equality is in large part an ongoing tale of two economies,” Goodman observes: Women make the recession-resistant healthcare and education sectors run—at 78 cents on the dollar compared to men, who dominate in construction and manufacturing. Research shows the female halves of two-earner couples still do much of the housework. Now, Goodman writes, "marriages are also facing an infrastructure change."

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In this Jan. 22, 2009 file photo Lilly Ledbetter speaks during a news conference on Capitol Hill. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File)

Women now make up nearly half the workforce, because traditionally male jobs are bearing the brunt of the recession. (Shutterstock)

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We are about to see if men are shovel-ready to take on more family and household labor. - Ellen Goodman

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