Photo by Anna Shvets from Pexels
As we pause to reflect during this Women’s History Month, it’s no secret women-owned businesses are an unstoppable driving force in economic growth. My own local newspaper reported that prior to the pandemic, women-owned businesses represented 42% of all businesses. Over the past five years the number of women-owned businesses increased by 21%, while all others were up only 9%.
A report from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce found that unfortunately women-owned businesses have been more heavily impacted by the pandemic than male-owned businesses and are less likely to anticipate a strong recovery in the year ahead. It’s incredibly disheartening to think pre-pandemic women-owned businesses were increasing at such a drastic rate but now declining faster than their male counterparts.
According to the recent Latest Trends in Worker Demographics by the National Council on Compensation Insurance (NCCI), women and the workers under age 25 experienced larger employment declines at the height of the pandemic than other demographic groups. In general, women’s employment is growing faster than men’s employment at younger ages, but men’s employment is growing faster than women’s at older ages. The report has lots of other good stats on the labor force and injuries.
Women’s History Month is a celebration of women’s contributions to history, culture and society, which originally began as a weeklong recognition in Sonoma, California in 1978. In 1981, the U.S. Congress passed a resolution commemorating the week, with an official month-long acknowledgement in 1987. Not a day goes by that I am not struck by listening to brilliant women solve complicated problems, sell unusual ideas, and share smiles in a time that needs more than usual. Hats off to my female colleagues as we recognize them more than ever in March!
LMA Newsletter of 3-15-21
