The pandemic has had a devastating impact on women in the workforce. So far, approximately 3 million women in the US have exited the workforce, a 9.4% drop in US women’s employment. If you consider the labor force growth rate pre-pandemic, there are now 2.3 million fewer women working than would have been had that trajectory continued, representing some of the worst numbers we have seen in decades. All in all, women are exiting the workforce at four times the rate of men and most of these women are still struggling with whether or not to return to work.
The main culprit in this exodus is the child care crisis. It has required parents to come up with different childcare arrangements for their children and most of the responsibilities for these unpaid care work have fallen on women, forcing them to sacrifice their careers in order to ensure the wellbeing of their children and secure the sanity of their households. According to Lean In and McKinsey, one in four women are considering downshifting their careers or leaving the workforce entirely, due to the pandemic. While three in five women still plan to leave their employers within the next two years. Most have cited the lack of work-life balance as the top reason for this decision. The severity of this matter is evident and calls for employers to act expeditiously and proactively to support women and improve working conditions for them within their organization.
So what can employers do to keep these women within their organization while attracting and hiring more female workers? There is an array of great options but here are some critical areas of focus:
- Rethink the workplace norms of your organization – let’s face it, if you don’t fix one of the main contributing factors of the exit, your organization will continue to bleed female workers and remain an unattractive place of work to women. Even though you manage to hire other women to replace those exiting, the new hires will ultimately catch on and leave for more forward thinking organizations that have crafted policies with women at the center. So it is crucial that organizations revisit, revise and implement direct strategies that actually improve conditions for women within the organization. Incorporating remote work options, more robust maternity leave and floating holidays policies are great places to start.
- Shore up your recruiting efforts – As your workplace norms transform to accommodate and appeal to a wider spectrum of society, be sure to publicize these changes on your website, social media accounts etc. So prospective employees can know what your organization is about and what it values. Create a system that encourages and rewards referrals from employees. Attend recruiting events and career fairs, particularly those targeting women (and other under represented groups), and be intentional and proactive in building relationships with institutions that nurture and invest in the advancement of these groups.
- Create systems that make it easy for past employees to reach out to share or ask for information – This new line of communication can unearth diamond level worth of insights for your organization. From learning about their experiences working at the organization, to their raw take on market trends and challenges, to gaining better understanding of where they are in their careers and what is next for them. Consistently engaging in this way will also help evolve your recruiting pipeline. And should these employees ultimately make a return to your organization, be sure to offer them opportunities to make up for lost time and to communicate clear paths to advance themselves and grow their careers.
When MTI economists looked at the impact of equalizing employment across gender in the workplace, they found that an evenly-split gender diversity can increase revenues by up to 41%. This is very much in line with countless other research that underscore the immense financial benefits of a diverse workforce, to an organization. So by making a concerted effort to improve conditions for women in the workforce, employers will not only improve organization’s culture but its bottomline as well, positioning it perfectly to survive and thrive in the long term.
About the Author:
Malobi Achike is a passionate diversity and inclusion ambassador and helps organizations prioritize all its people through intentional and consistent focus on strategic Diversity, Equity and Inclusion efforts.