The US economy is being held back by sexism, says OECD

In its latest assessment of the American economy, the OECD concludes that the US is still making it difficult for women and African-Americans to contribute as much as they could to the economy, resulting in slowed growth and supressed wages following the Great Recession.

The report notes that certain policies and attitudes within the US are hindering workers from maximizing their potential to earn more money through their work, thus contributing to further economic growth, saying that these issues are “compromising the economy’s ability to direct skills toward the activities where they are most highly valued.” The report states that these issues “still tilt the playing field against some groups—such as women, African-Americans, and those with criminal records.” Furthermore, it highlights that the working-age population now collecting disability insurance is growing, creating further obstacles for women and men participating in the job market.

“Family-friendly” policies—for example, better public access to day care and pre-school, and mandated paid parental leave—are just some of the policy suggestions made by the OECD as part of its report, which it believes will encourage more African-Americans and women to work, and help those who might have otherwise left the labor force to raise children, and who later struggle to return to work, to obtain more skills and therefore better jobs.

The report also finds a direct correlation between states that endorse more family-friendly policies and the number of working women in those states. Secretary General of the OECD, Angel Gurria, discussing the suggested policies and their effect on women in the workforce, states that: “They can have babies and bosses at the same time, or be bosses themselves, rather than choose one.” However, compared with other countries in the OECD, such as Japan, the US has seen its share of prime-aged women in the workforce decline over the last 15 years, whereas female labor force participation in other OECD nations has risen on average in the same period.

Gurria also adds that the wage gap between men and women is still significant, despite its reduction over the last few decades, and notes that the US should also try to encourage women who do gain college degrees to study high-value science and engineering fields.

Further suggestions made in the report include improving work opportunities for African-Americans, reforming disability insurance programs to avoid penalizing rehabilitated workers, and a call for the government to spend more money on skills training for displaced workers and new business formation, among others.

In her IZA World of Labor article, Do childcare policies increase maternal employment?, Daniela Vuri says that: “Policymakers must identify the most effective instruments when designing approaches for encouraging maternal labor force participation.”

However, in his article Childcare subsidy policy: What it can and cannot accomplish, Erdal Tekin writes that: “Given the conflict between the two goals, childcare policy should be more about children and less about parental employment, as high-quality childcare has significant private and societal benefits.”

Related articles:
Do childcare policies increase maternal employment? by Daniela Vuri
Childcare subsidy policy: What it can and cannot accomplish by Edral Tekin
Wage compression and the gender pay gap by Lawrence M. Kahn
Female labor force participation in developing countries by Sher Verick