Tapping the Third Billion

Come January, record numbers of women will be sworn into the new Congress alongside a landmark 21 female CEO’s set to lead Fortune 500 companies.

Named the “third billion,” U.S. women are expected to have as much global economic impact as the billion-plus populations of India and China. So, it will be nice when American social policies catch up to other parts of the world.

When it comes to quality of life, a recent study by Booz & Co. revealed U.S. women fall behind Poland, Slovakia and Lithuania.

“It was surprising for us to find many Eastern European countries have better maternity leave policies than the U.S.,” says DeAnne Aguirre, Booz & Co. senior partner and lead researcher of the report.

What’s making life so tough for American women? “Lack of equal pay for equal work and maternity leave,” says Aguirre.

Over 60 percent of U.S. low-wage workers are women. “Even when women try to climb the ladder, they get stuck in middle ranks.” In other countries, like Germany, women are more likely to take a stand in government about equal pay.

There’s also the “care economy.”

Women in OECD countries spend about 2.4 hours more than men on unpaid work — including care work — each day. The report shows, if companies and governments want women to reach their maximum economic potential, they must provide high-quality, accessible care for children and the elderly.

“American women have trouble getting ahead without travel, long hours at work and sacrificing time with family,” Aguirre adds.

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“We still live in a world in which a significant fraction of people, including women, believe that a woman belongs and wants to belong exclusively in the home.” Rosalyn Sussman