Gender Equality in U.S. Labor Markets in the “Great Recession” of 2007–10

Abstract

The -Great Recession‖ of 2007-2009, the worst economic downturn faced by the U.S. economy since the Great Depression, has also come to be known as the -Great Man-cession‖ in that job loss hit males harder than females. By contrast, this paper argues that the -man-cession‖ story is far too simple. Using a broad range of indicators from the Current Population Survey (CPS) and taking a historical perspective, we show that several demographic groups have been especially hard hit by the recession, including African American males and females, Hispanic males and females, young females, and families maintained by single women. In addition, the gender gap in unemployment is much smaller once underemployed and marginally attached workers are counted. Data from the Current Employment Statistics cast further doubt on the man-cession story, indicating that women lost over 10 times more jobs in the current recession than in the previous two recessions compared to men, who lost 2.3 times more jobs. Following this review of the trends, the paper surveys federal and state government responses to the needs of workers hardest hit by the recession and concludes that -man-cession‖ label has led to misidentification of the most vulnerable groups who should be the explicit beneficiaries of economic recovery policies.

Sociodemographic inequality in exposure to COVID-19-induced economic hardship in the United Kingdom

“…More precisely, during the Great Recession (2007–2009), individuals in lower-ranked occupations and lower-paid occupations were most vulnerable to becoming unemployed. Racial minorities and men were overrepresented in the sectors that were hit hardest by the recession, and therefore became disproportionally exposed to job loss ( Danziger, Chavez, & Cumberworth, 2012 ; Grown & Tas, 2011 ; Hout, Levanon, & Cumberworth, 2011 ; Wall, 2009 ).…”

Engendering Macroeconomic Theory and Policy

“…Regardless of which sectors are first affected by job losses due to downturns, prolonged recessions that lead to strains on public sector budgets and therefore budget cuts, may have more negative effects on women than men. This is due to women's greater employment concentration in government jobs (Grown and Tas 2011).…”

Gender, Socioeconomic Status, and Time Use of Married and Cohabiting Parents during the Great Recession

“…Job recovery was initially slower for women-in part due to the loss of government jobs during this period-but by June 2014, women had regained all the jobs they lost in the recession and more, while men have regained about almost all (90 percent) of the jobs they lost during the recession (Hartmann, Shaw, and O'Connor 2014: 1). Evidence also shows that involuntary part-time work and other forms of underemployment increased during the recession and in its immediate aftermath, a trend also observed in the European economies most affected by the recession and austerity (Grown and Tas 2014;Karamessini and Rubery, forthcoming).…”