Amid Layoffs, Women Surge

Workplace Buzz on February 6, 2009 11:37 AM

Amid all the bleak economic news, a milestone: women are poised to surpass men on the nation’s payrolls, taking the majority for the first time in American history. The New York Times reports that it has less to do with gender equality than with where the ax is falling: men represent 82 percent of all job losses in distressed industries like manufacturing and construction. Women tend to work in areas like education and health care, which are less sensitive to economic ups and downs, and in jobs that allow more time for child care and other domestic work.


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