Washington — Aug. 2
According to analysis by the Institute for Women’s Policy Research, or IWPR, of the August employment report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), job growth slowed in July for men but accelerated slightly for women.
Of the 162,000 total jobs added to nonfarm payrolls in July, women gained 117,000 jobs (72 percent) while men gained 45,000 jobs (28 percent). In June women gained 102,000 jobs and men gained 86,000 jobs.
Women’s employment growth in July was aided by growth in professional and business services (44,000 jobs added for women), retail trade (29,500 jobs added) and leisure and hospitality (16,000 jobs added).
IWPR analysis of the BLS payroll data also showed that, as of July, women have regained 96 percent (2.6 million) of the total jobs they lost in the recession from December 2007 to the trough for women’s employment in September 2010 (2.7 million).
Men, meanwhile, have regained more than 69 percent (4.2 million) of the jobs they lost between December 2007 and the trough for men’s employment in February 2010 (6 million).
In the last year, from July 2012 to July 2013, of the 2.3 million jobs added to payrolls, 1.2 million, or 52 percent, were filled by women, and 1.1 million, or 48 percent, were filled by men. The gap between women’s and men’s employment was 1.6 million jobs in July, less than at the start of the recession.
According to the household survey data reported by the BLS, the unemployment rate for women aged 16 and older decreased to 7 percent in July from 7.3 percent in June. The unemployment rate for men aged 16 and older declined slightly from 7.8 percent in June to 7.7 percent in July. Among single mothers (female heads of households), the unemployment rate fell to 10.5 percent in July from 10.7 percent in June.
Source: Institute for Women’s Policy Research
