2020 saw the rise of the COVID pandemic and nearly 2 million women to disappear from the workforce. Recent research however, is suggesting that they’re finally beginning to return as numbers approach pre-pandemic levels. In March 2023, the number of women active in the US workforce finally topped the number measured before the pandemic in February 2020; 77.8 million in 2023 as compared to 77.6 million in 2020. A number of factors are promoting women to reenter the workforce, including more reliable schooling options, fewer business and industry closures, and an improved public health outlook.
While many women are returning to the workforce, a significant portion of them face difficult problems while attempting to return to the office. Older female workers are more likely to be let go or fired by their employers. Women in the workplace face discrimination based on their age at least 5 years earlier than men and are more likely to be rejected by a potential employer when compared to men of a similar age. Many women also say that they need to be at home to stay and care for children and loved ones. Women are 5 to even 8 times more likely to have their careers impacted by caregiving than men. Another large contributor that is holding women back is a lack of confidence after taking time off to care for family members or children.
Learn more about the pressures barring women from returning to work and how women are reinvesting in themselves here:
Source: Sieber Plastic Surgery
