Older Women
With women in the US living longer and postponing retirement, whether out of necessity or by choice, many face economic hardship and discrimination. Although illegal in theory, older women may, in practice, be excluded from job or promotional opportunities based on misconceptions about their abilities or customer preferences for youth. Dual discrimination on the job is evidenced by older women being denied access to training programs and being channeled into positions without upward mobility. Retirement benefits are being further eroded by a weakening of organized labor, economic restructuring and budget cutbacks.
The bill to fund – and de-fund – the federal government for the remainder of fiscal year 2011, H.R. 1, passed the House on February 19, 2011, on a party-line vote (all but three Republicans voting voted for the bill; all Democrats voting voted against it). The bill slashes funding for services vital to women and girls at every stage in their lives, from early childhood to K-12, through their working and childbearing years, and into old age. In addition, the bill prohibits the federal government from enforcing important legal protections for women.
By Kyla Bender-Baird
What We Do
NCRW is a network of leading university and community based research, policy, and advocacy centers with a growing global reach dedicated to advancing rights and opportunities for women and girls. We also have a Corporate Circle comprised of senior diversity professionals from leading U.S. and global member companies and a Presidents Circle of college and university leaders who share our commitment. NCRW harnesses the collective power of its network to provide knowledge, analysis, and thought leadership on issues ranging from reducing women’s poverty to building a critical mass of women’s leadership across sectors.
