Women’s History Month: March 2021 The Numbers
Rounding out this month of celebrating women, I wanted to present the changes and advances that women have made over the last decade. Women have increased their education, especially in fields of engineering, math and sciences. Women have increased their earnings and fields of occupation and Women continue to live longer than men.
Here are some stats from our Census Bureau to show some of the changes over the years.
· In 2019 there were 166.6 million females in the United States as of July and 161.7 million males.
· Women over the age of 85 outnumbered men 2 to1 in 2019 in the United States (4.2 million to 2.4 million).
· In 2019 40-60% of workers in the following fields were women: Rental Clerks, Financial Managers, Pharmacists, Legislators, Veterinarians, Chemists and material scientists. Another 20-40% occupied the following fields: Chief Executives, mathematicians, Dentists, clergy, construction managers.
· In 2019 women age 25 or older who earned a bachelor’s degree or higher were 33.9% compared to men at 32.3%. In 2010, only 27.9% of women had completed this level of education.
· In 2019 79.2 million females ages 16 and older were part of the civilian labor force. In 2010 only 74.1 million were accounted for.
· In 2019 female full-time, year round workers showed 81.6% over 16 years’ median earnings compared to men. In 2010, women earned only 78.6% of what men made.
Here are some more stats to review:
OCCUPATION BY SEX FOR THE FULL-TIME, YEAR-ROUND CIVILIAN EMPLOYED POPULATION 16 YEARS AND OVER:
Women are making gains in all areas, but since they are nearly half of the workforce they are only 27% occupied in STEM positions. Women have made some big leaps going from just 8% in STEM in 1970 to 27% in 2019, but men are still dominating this field at over 73%.
STEM workers play a significant role in the U.S. economy and workforce, especially in innovative capacity and global competitiveness. The positions are engineers, medical scientists, sociologists and informational security analysts.
Each year we celebrate national STEM/STEAM Day on November 8th to help promote and encourage all youth, but especially young women, to explore science, technology, engineering, art and math.
Here are some occupations with the emphasis on STEM:
· Engineering-architectural, engineering managers, sales engineers, civil engineers.
· Computer- information systems managers, computer managers.
· Life science, physical science, social science- natural science managers, occupational health and safety specialists.
· Architects
· Health care and technical practitioners.
Here are some non-STEM related occupations:
· Business and financial operations.
· Management.
· Community and social service
· Legal
· Protective service.
· Educational/Library services.
· Building maintenance/Facility management
· Office/administrative support.
· Sales
· Arts, design, entertainment, sports, journalism/media.
· Construction and extraction.
· Video production/editing/film.
· Transportation/moving.
It is always a great idea to encourage young women to explore new ideas. Take a welding class or a mechanics class. Learn how to build a garden, fence or fix things around the house. Discover how fun it is to grow food and learn how to irrigate the land and create amazing soil. Take an architecture class to learn how they create streets, housing communities or grocery stores. Learn how to become a personal trainer and how to keep your body and mind healthy.
There are so many opportunities for women to grow and expand. I love using my friend as an example. She worked 15 years in health and wellness and when she was laid off, she took a welding class for fun. She enjoyed it so much, she became an instructor, created a non-profit and introduced young women to the art of welding. She is an inspiration and has a blast doing what she loves now!
Branch out and see what may intrigue you or your daughter or grand-daughter to do something daring, bold and brilliant! Encourage them to think outside the box and explore without fear!
