The pandemic’s impact on the reduction in workforce is beginning to fade, specifically amongst the women. As of March 2023, 57.2% is the labor force participation of women which is nearly similar to the pre-pandemic level of 57.9% in Feb. 2020. In certain growing industries such as Kindergarten and preschool teachers, women dominate the share of the workforce at 96.8%. Despite those positive numbers, women still face plenty of challenges at the workplace.
Older female workers are more likely to be fired or let go with 61% of US workers above 45 say they have experienced ageism. Women are 5 to 8x more likely to have their careers impacted by caregiving than men. Lack of confidence is another critical issue.
There are two parts to this, one being career breaks to look after family or children. 45% of women felt that taking this time away damaged their career. The second bit is lookism, the pressure to maintain youthful beauty standards to keep a job. 44% of women experience negative feelings when not wearing make-up. Women are 2x more likely than men to feel pressure about dying their hair for work.
However, women continue to fight on by overcoming these roadblocks. Finding Professional Mentorship is one path with 45% women saying they feel less anxious if they overcome self doubt. Pursuing hybrid roles has also been another road favored with 66% women stating that hybrid work allows them to experience less bias.
Last but not least effective step has been reinvesting in themselves. Women want to regain confidence in their physical appearances, especially new mothers who struggle with body dysmorphia. Going forward with cosmetic surgery may be a reason for there being 993,000 more mothers working in Dec. 2022 as compared to Dec. 2021.
