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International Women’s Day investing in women

Women account for 29.4% of entry-level workers in STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) but only 12.4% of C-Suite executives.  Women remain significantly underrepresented in the STEM workforce, making up 49.3% of total employment across non-STEM occupations but just 29.2% of all STEM workers, World Economic Forum says observing that March is Women’s History Month and that the International Women’s Day is celebrated on March 8.

“Given STEM occupations are likely to dominate the jobs of the future and offer much higher earning potential, we will only be able to close broader gaps in workforce participation, pay and leadership if we create stronger pathways for girls and women to progress in STEM education and careers”, Genesis Elhussein and Julia Hakspiel, both Action Leads at WEF, write in a blog post.

They argue that creating opportunities for hands-on work experience and an inclusive workplace environment is key for retaining young women in STEM careers.

“We can only close broader gaps in workforce participation, pay and leadership if we create stronger pathways for women to progress in STEM education and careers.”

International Women’s Day on March 8, 2024 has the slogan ‘Invest in Women: Accelerate Progress,’ targeting economic disempowerment. 

UN Women in a statement says that an additional $360 billion is needed per year to achieve gender equality.

Closing gender gaps in employment could boost GDP per capita by 20%”. 

“Closing gaps in care and expanding services with decent jobs could spark almost 300 million jobs by 2035.”

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Investing in women can be an opportunity.  It is estimated that closing existing gaps in care services and expanding decent works, would create almost 300 million jobs by 2035. Studies also show investment in the care sector could create almost three times as many jobs as the same investment in construction and produce 30% less greenhouse gas emissions.” 

“Investments in care will also free up much needed time for women to engage in activities of their choice including economic activities, education, or leisure. Despite these clear benefits, women continue to be left behind in the economy”, the US Women says.

For American women, job opportunities look much different than they did 50 years ago,  US-based Pew Research Centre notes in a data summary. 

“Women have made gains in labour force participation and wages, and they’ve increased their presence in the highest-paying jobs. Some of that progress has stalled in recent years, however, and large gender gaps persist at the top levels of government and business leadership.”

The Pew’s summary:  

  • Women made up 47% of the US civilian labour force in 2023, up from 30% in 1950 – but growth has stagnated.
  • Women outnumber men in the US college-educated workforce, now making up 51% of those ages 25 and older. 
  • About a third of workers in the country’s 10 highest-paying occupations (35%) are women – up from 13% in 1980.
  • The share of women in opposite-sex marriages who earn as much as or more than their husband has roughly tripled over the past 50 years.
  • The gender pay gap – the difference between the median earnings of men and women – has remained relatively flat in the United States over the past two decades. 
  • Women still lag in top leadership positions in business and government.
  • Slim majorities of Americans say there are too few women in top political offices and executive business positions.
  • The public is divided over whether being a woman makes it more difficult to get ahead,
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World Economic Forum notes that at the current rate of progress, it will take 131 years to reach full gender parity, according to the Forum’s latest Global Gender Gap Report.

Diversity in representation matters, the forum says listing “10 incredible women to watch in 2024”.

The list covers politics, science and business. Tech business is represented by Reshma Saujani, founder of Girls Who Code and Moms First. She has dedicated her career to breaking down systemic barriers in the fight for gender equality. 

Her organisation has taught coding to over 580,000 students aiming to close the gender gap in tech.

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