According to IWPR analysis of the January employment report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), released February 1, 2013, job growth was stronger for women (102,000 jobs) than men (55,000 jobs), for a total of 157,000 jobs added to nonfarm payrolls during the month of January.

In January, there was strong growth in women’s employment in education and health services (32,000 jobs added), professional and business services (23,000 jobs added), retail trade (17,000 jobs), and information (10,000 jobs). However, women continued to lose jobs in government (8,000 in January).With BLS revisions of prior payroll jobs data going back several years for women, IWPR analysis now shows that women have done better in the recovery than men have, having regained a larger share of the jobs they lost.

IWPR analysis of the BLS payroll data shows that, as of January 2013, women have regained 72 percent of the total jobs they lost in the recession from December 2007 to the trough for women’s employment in September 2010. Men have regained nearly 59 percent of the jobs they lost between December 2007 and the trough for men’s employment in February 2010.

In the last year, from January 2012 to January 2013, of the 2 million jobs added to payrolls, 48 percent were filled by women and 52 percent were filled by men. The gap between women’s and men’s employment is 1.7 million jobs in January, substantially less than at the start of the recession (3.4 million jobs in December 2007).

Between January 2012 and January 2013, a large drop in unemployment was seen among single mothers (from 12.0 to 11.3 percent), suggesting that they are finally participating more fully in the recovery. Their annual unemployment (not seasonally adjusted) rose steadily from 6.5 percent in 2007, the year before the recession began, to 12.4 percent in 2011. In 2012, their annual unemployment was 11.4 percent, the first significant drop in unemployment for single mothers.

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The Institute for Women's Policy Research (IWPR) conducts rigorous research and disseminates its findings to address the needs of women and their families, promote public dialogue, and strengthen communities and societies. IWPR is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization that also works in affiliation with the women's studies, and the public policy and public administration programs at The George Washington University.
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