In a study released by the Institute for Women’s Policy Research it was noted that the number of women in labor unions has jumped from one-third in 1984 to 45% overall in 2015. The move is significant in that it highlights how women are redefining labor unions.
Ariane Hegewisch, the study director, noted to CBS that it’s possible that by 2025, women could be the majority in labor unions. The shift from a male-dominated to a female-dominated sector is credited to various factors, one of which is that men have moved to work in different fields where unionization is less present.
The wage gap among union workers, however, is less for women than it is in other fields — women make 78 cents to a man’s 88.7 cents.
In his Labor Union speech in Boston on Monday, President Obama emphasized the need for equal pay and paid leave among union workers. Joking that in many cases women would return back to work after 2 weeks of childbirth, addressing the men, he said, “We wouldn’t even go to work if we had to carry around somebody for nine months.”
Cover image courtesy of Shutterstock.
comments