By 2030, an estimated 2.3 billion people will be in need of care, including children, individuals with disabilities, and, increasingly, the elderly (an increase of 200 million from 2015). The ILO estimates that 647 million adults of working age are outside the labor force due to family care responsibilities, and more than three quarters of these unpaid carers are women. This reinforces gender inequalities and impedes economic growth and development across the globe
As the demand for care workers continues to increase, governments are under pressure to make investments in the care economy, create new economic opportunities both for those currently doing unpaid care work as well as for those seeking high-quality work opportunities, reducing the gender divide in the workforce, and contributing to a more resilient economy. The U.S. government recognized the linkage between the care economy and economic resilience (with its national security implications) when it mandated that recipients of funding from the CHIPS and Science Act put in place childcare opportunities for workers.
In this panel discussion, participants will discuss the challenges associated with the care economy in the United States and around the world, including the policies that can enable countries to be better prepared to support the increasing demand for workers with these skills as well as ensure today’s workers remain in the workforce. Participants will examine the link between the care economy and countries’ economic growth prospects and discuss why meeting this challenge is an economic, social, and national security imperative.
This event is made possible by a grant from the International Labour Office in Washington, DC (ILO USCA).
