This term is part of the title of a recent essay in The Economist about the impact of women in – or not in – the economy. Citing a number of studies that show the situation slowly improving, the item points out how that very improvement demonstrates the need for more.
In one segment, the article explains that if the gap between men and women at work (in the US around 12%, in European countries, between less than 5% to over 20%, in Japan, over 20%) were closed, and if this were reflected appropriately in GDP, then “America’s GDP would be 9% higher, the euro zone’s would be 13% more, and Japan’s would be boosted by 16%.” Additional wealth, productivity, diversity of products and services created and delivered, problems solved, needs met, quality of life raised – all forgone because we can’t quite figure this one out.
In some cases, taxes are a burden that discourage women from seeking employment. Indeed, according to the cited article, in at least two European countries, tax rates for a “second earner” are 60% higher than for a household’s primary earner.
To the rescue come two economists in the US who, according to this item posted at Management-Issues, propose that tax rates for women generally be lowered to 80% of that paid by men. They argue that this would draw more women into the labor force strengthening the economy, bolstering tax receipts, helping to address ongoing pay disparities, and even modifying the equilibrium in ways that would give men more options to stay at home, if they chose.
As for other countries, the professors suggest that the tax rate differential could be adjusted according to the disparity in employment. For example, in Italy (one of the two countries cited just above), the rate could be 68% that of the tax rate for men (this proposal regarding Italy is also touched on by two Italian economists cited in the item from The Economist).
Women are increasingly the key to frankly and effectively addressing many of the economic, social, organizational, and managerial problems bearing down on us from the near future. As the Economist article concludes:
Men run the world’s economies; but it may be up to women to rescue them.
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