Catherwood LibraryILR School

Women as low-wage earners continues to be an issue and a growing one as the recovery takes hold. While women make up about 53.6% of the U.S. labor market, they also make up about 64% of the minimum wage earners. Advocates for a more equal labor market are proposing that the U.S. follow in the U.K.?s footsteps and push for greater representation of women in apprenticeship programs, which have historically led to solid middle-class wage jobs. In 2012, after a 20-year campaign, over half of new apprentices in the U.K. were women, but in the U.S. in the same year only about 6% of apprentices were women. In addition to recruiting more women into traditional apprenticeships, like construction, the U.K. incentivized the creation of apprenticeships in more women-dominated roles, like hairdressing. The expansion has caused more lower-wage apprenticeships, but has also given more workers a path to career transition which appeals more to employers and job seekers.