Women's Work?

The news that women are dropping out of the workforce for longer and longer stretches because of the slowing economy is troubling, but not surprising.

Although economists have been noting this trend for a few years, they've always chalked it up to some sort of "New Motherhood Movement" explanation, which I found perplexing because it rang false (did I not get the memo about some sort of widespread, cultural shift in attitudes among working mothers about retreating into the domestic sphere?). 

Although at first glance it seems like this trend is no big thing--the percentage of women in the workforce has dropped 2.2 percent over the past eight years--from 74.9 to 72.7--when you consider that this drop eliminates 12 years of gains for women, these numbers should raise some alarms.   When you also consider that "on-ramps" for women (the amount of time it takes for a woman to enter back into the workforce in a job that matches her set of skills and qualifications) are much longer than they are for men, and that working women contribute a big chunk of income to the average working family's income, you have the all the makings of a slow-moving economic disaster on your hands.

Although there seems to be some surprise on the part of researchers who discovered this trend, to me the only surprise is why it took so long to figure out that the economy has been impacting working women on par with their male counterparts.  

I doubt that this issue will gain much traction with the Presidential candidates, but it's one more sign that Americans need real economic solutions this election year.

Have you noticed this trend among your friends and colleagues where you live?