Women are returning to work, but this is something else

Although the data shows that more women are returning to work, they are still doing so on the back foot. Amidst the encouraging news, the reality is that women are returning to many of the same issues that have long plagued the workplace, long before the pandemic, and their future is more uncertain than that of men.

The persistent lack of pay parity is one of the problems. Although BLS data for July 2023 showed that the wage gap is the lowest since 1979, women still earn only 83% of what men earn, and that number increases for blacks , Hispanic and Native women, and women age 35 and older.

Also, in homes with male-female partnerships, Kriegel says, most of the housework still falls to women, as it did in the past, regardless of whether they work. First, it makes them highly susceptible to burnout, which has been a major cause of women leaving the workforce during the pandemic. And when women find themselves unable to balance work and home demands when they take on a new job, they are likely to be the first to prefer the higher wages of their male partners.

The uncertain future of both the workplace and public health in general also means that women are more vulnerable than men to future job losses.

For example, remote and flexible arrangements that allowed many women to return are under threat as managers now call workers into the office, often making attendance mandatory, leading to job losses. As a return to most face-to-face work becomes inevitable, women who need the flexibility to remain in the workplace as well as caregiving and domestic responsibilities face a major challenge.

Even when women are able to maintain the necessary precautions, they may be affected by proximity bias or the stigma of flexibility—phenomena in which bosses favor personal employees they see, even unconsciously. Kriegel says this is especially true if “their employers openly say that in-person work is better than remote work, or if they work remotely more often than men.”

Gina Cardazon, head of research at LeanIn, agrees that the situation is volatile. She warns that if unemployment rises, employers could gain more power, which would end up giving employees less of what they want – which could be a direct blow to women.

As the economy remains uncertain, women’s gains in the labor market are encouraging but also volatile. At the end of the day, we shouldn’t ignore the good news for working women. But it’s equally important to understand that this progress hangs in the balance, especially if employers don’t take action.