The argument for gender parity in the workforce has long been framed around fairness. Today, it’s increasingly being pitched as an economic salve.
A new report by the McKinsey Global Institute finds that the U.S. could add $2.1 trillion to the nation’s gross domestic product in less than two decades if states made varying strides to raise women’s rate of labor force participation, increase the number of hours they work and spread them into more-productive job sectors. One thing that weighs heavily on American women’s earning potential is the fact they do almost double the amount of unpaid care work as men, including cooking, cleaning and taking care of children, according to the report.
McKinsey’s analysis creates a scenario where all states make as much progress on increasing female labor force participation and other variables as those that have seen marked improvements, such as Texas, New York and North Carolina.
Narrowing those gaps could boost GDP by 5% or more in every state, and half of states can add more than 10%, the report found. To do that, the U.S. would need to invest about $475 billion to help create the 6.4 million jobs and support services like more child care that are needed to lift GDP and improve productivity.
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