He wanted to persuade married women (and, crucially, their husbands) that they could go to work without threatening the natural order of things. The steady influx of women into the labour market became vital to sustaining growth in household living standards, not just in the US. It grew a little recently thanks to the tight labour market, but Covid-19 has triggered a sharp drop back. Betsey Stevenson, an economics professor at the University of Michigan, says the fragile attachment of American women to the labour market is the consequence of the country’s woeful caregiving infrastructure. Women aren’t just working for “second car” money these days - the fate of the economy depends on them.

Source: The Irish Times October 06, 2020 16:41 UTC