Why Are Women Leaving the Workforce? A Conversation with Kendra Kabasele

Kendra Kabasele interviewed me for her blog, Kenversations about the fact that women are leaving the workforce in droves and starting independent businesses.

This is a topic that I am very interested in and write about often. She asked me questions about why women are leaving the workforce, what their experiences are like while in Corporate America, how they are viewed in the workplace as opposed to men and what particular challenges women with children face while in the workplace, amongst other things.

Here is a preview of the full interview which can be read on Kendra’s blog.

Kendra Kabasele: One of the topics you address in your work is the state of independent workers and the fact that women are leaving the workforce in big numbers. When did this trend start becoming a significant movement?

Anne Loehr: During the last recession, organizations hired independent workers in order to keep costs down. Then, better technology came on the scene making offsite working easier than ever. That coupled with the fear of another recession just continued the trend.

There is definitely an appeal for the younger generations to have the freedom and flexibility of independent work. You could say that they are carrying the torch now.

As far as women leaving the workforce, I think they are realizing that they can achieve more by consulting or creating start-ups. Despite being equally (or more) educated and experienced as their male peers, statistics show that only 19% of C suite executives are women. Only 4% are CEOs!  That’s not very inspiring.

Kendra Kabasele: What are some of the experiences of women in the workforce? More specifically, what are some characteristics of these women, as well as their mindsets and even emotional health?

Anne Loehr: An info-graphic we made on women in the workforce shows that 77% of women felt impeded in career advancement because of exclusion from social networks at work. I suppose that is one of the more frustrating parts of their experience in the workforce.

There is a very interesting article from Stanford on transgender experiences in the workplace. One participant, Thomas, replaced Susan (himself), at work. Someone from an associated company called Thomas’ boss to say that he was glad Susan was replaced since she was incompetent and Thomas was not. He did not know they were the same person.

Extensive interviews reported that overall, participants couldn’t believe how much more authority they were given at work after transitioning to male. Even on topics they were not experts on, they were listened to more than actual experts in the same conversation who were female.

One participant said as a male, he suddenly had more “great ideas.” They also felt fast-tracked to promotions.

I guess this all is to say there are gender differences at work and also a gender hierarchy. It is a very real thing.

As far as what women in the workplace are like,The Fiscal Times had a piece that talked about men and women’s characteristics from a contemporary perspective. They reported that women in the workplace ask for more challenges, work longer hours, are team players, can see situations more holistically and are more persuasive than their male counterparts.

Kendra Kabasele: How do the women differ when they are single versus when they have children and a family? Or are there any differences?

Anne Loehr: One way that women differ in the workforce when they are single is that they earn more money. In fact, a recent article in TIME reported that for the first time, women in many cities are earning more (on average 8%) than their male counterparts. But the women who are earning more are all single, childless and in their 30’s.

The study states these women earn more largely because of education– for every two guys who graduate college, three women do. And women have better adapted to our new knowledge-based economy. The problem is, their economic advantage evaporates as they age and have families.

Women with families absolutely have a different working experience than those without. Joan Williams, who is the director of the Center of WorkLife Law at the University of California, Hastings College of Law, says of all the triggers of stereotyping in today’s workplace, motherhood triggers the strongest bias.

Researchers have given subjects identical resumes, aside for one single detail. One resume stated involvement in the PTA, indicating motherhood. The mothers were 79% less likely to be hired and 100% less likely to be promoted.

Harder still, they are held to stricter punctuality standards and higher performance standards.

I guess we can conclude that women in the workforce who have families face huge barriers for success and are expected to work even harder for it. Add that to the high cost of childcare and the lack of tax credits and it becomes really clear why a woman might want to leave the workforce and think more creatively about her career.

We ended the interview discussing how women can take the leap of working independently and what their experiences with this plan of action are.

Kendra Kabasele: How can women make the leap into taking the route of becoming independent workers, without the worry that they are making a mistake and/or won’t be able to sustain themselves?

To read my response to this great question and more that I haven’t shared here, please read my full interview with Kendra Kabasele on her blog.

Want to join the conversation? You can leave Kendra a comment on her blog or leave me one below. You can also tweet me or send me an email.

I’d love to hear your experiences with the particular challenges women face in the workplace and any ideas you have for change.