Last spring, 3.5 million mothers living with school-age children left the workforce — either losing their jobs, going on leave, or exiting the workforce altogether.
Latina and Black women have been hit hardest, as women's labor-force participation reached a 33-year low in January.
In this week's In Focus: SoCal, host Tanya McRae explores how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted women over the last year. Women have historically shouldered a heavier load of family caregiving responsibilities and have done so even more this past year. During the pandemic, women lost their jobs at a higher rate than men, and almost twice as many remain without a job.
Assemblywoman Autumn Burke joins the conversation to talk about her own experience as a working mother — and her mother's legacy as well. Yvonne Brathwaite Burke was the first Black woman from the West Coast to serve in Congress and the first woman to give birth while in office. She also served on the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors and State Senate, marking the first time in California that a mother and daughter served in the State Assembly.
Assemblywoman Burke talks about the importance of finding more women to run for office to make sure their perspectives and voices are heard.
"As a woman of color, I know that we've actually taken on a huge portion of the burden, and women are three times more likely to be the ones to take care of our families and to take care of the home," Burke said.
McRae also learns about Single Moms Planet, an organization that empowers single-parent families with financial literacy programs, family counseling, and entrepreneurial training. The most disadvantaged group in the U.S. is single-mother families, with 30% living under the poverty line.
Neferteri Plessy founded the group after going through a divorce and found herself struggling as a single mother.
Spectrum News 1's Vicky Nguyen also tells us how one Orange County businesswoman has been managing her beauty academy while taking care of her kids without child care support once the pandemic started.
Send us your thoughts at InFocusSocal@charter.com and watch Sundays at 9 a.m. and noon.