Greetings IWPR friends and supporters!

By now, many of you have heard the wonderful news that our good friend and IWPR Board member Liz Shuler has been elected as the first-ever woman President of the AFL-CIO!

Liz has been a powerful force in the labor movement for more than three decades, from growing up in a union household all the way to the top of one of the nation’s premier unions. She is a tireless advocate for workers everywhere and a key voice in the battle for women’s equality in the workplace. We are extremely proud to have Liz as part of the IWPR family and we know America’s workers will be in good hands under her outstanding leadership.

And speaking of unions:

Don’t miss the latest brief from IWPR on the impact America’s unions have on women and their families. Spoiler alert: Unions are an absolute boon for women workers and their economic security.

The report, Stronger Together: Union Membership Boosts Women’s Earnings and Economic Security, shows that union membership pays significant dividends to women, including higher wages and a narrower wage gap between women and men. The brief also details how these benefits often mean the difference between making rent and housing insecurity for women and their families.

Key research highlights:

  • Higher wages. Women covered by a union contract earn on average $195 (or 22.6 percent) more per week than non-unionized women.
  • Narrower wage gaps. Women covered by a union contract earn 87.3 cents for every dollar paid to union men compared to non-unionized women who earn 82 cents for every dollar paid to non-unionized men.
  • Less union power = lower wages across the board. In states with restrictions on the ability of unions to bargain on behalf of workers—so-called “right-to-work” states—wages are lower than in other states regardless of gender and union membership status.
  • Making rent. The difference in the median pay for women covered by a union contract compared to non-unionized women translates to 81 percent of annual median rent costs nationally. In 43 states, at least half of the yearly average rent costs could be paid with the yearly union wage advantage, and in 12 states, the union wage advantage pays for a full year or more of average rent.

Indeed, in every state, the full-time weekly earnings of women covered by union contracts are higher than the earnings of women not represented by unions. And the benefits of union participation also translate into improved employee benefits.

Click here to read the brief and learn more about the tremendous impact unions have on the lives of women in this country.

And stayed tuned for IWPR updates on women in the workforce and the wage gap coming soon!


In Solidarity,

Institute for Women's Policy Research

1200 18th Street NW, Suite 301

Washington DC, 20036

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