Periods of economic decline may present additional challenges for women seeking to advance into leadership positions.
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Every day, more women are steadily breaking barriers in the workforce. According to a Pew Research Center analysis of federal data, women are increasingly occupying high-paying jobs in the U.S., and as of 2023, nearly half of all managerial positions are held by women (up from just 29% in 1980). Similarly, the 2023 International Women’s Day “Participation Parity” report by global marketing agency Team Lewis found that 82% of employees report having women in high-level roles at their workplace.
Gradually, more women are stepping into leadership roles, an impressive feat considering where women were just a few short decades ago and the persisting gender biases that still lurk in today’s workforce. For instance, women often face roadblocks when looking to transition from an intro level position into their first management or leadership role. A phenomenon known as the “broken rung,” this in turn prevents many women from climbing the ladder and being considered for promotion into higher-paying roles with leadership opportunities. The increasing number of women overcoming systemic barriers signifies a meaningful shift toward greater equity and opportunity for women’s careers.
Yet even as Corporate America makes strides toward supporting women in the workplace, we are still far from achieving equity. According to a LinkedIn working paper titled “The Impact of Changes in Labor Market Conditions on Women Hired into Leadership Roles,” periods of economic decline may present additional challenges for women seeking to advance into leadership positions. LinkedIn data scientist Silvia Lara and economist Matthew Baird note that, based on their findings, “when labor conditions worsen, a smaller share of new hires into leadership are women.”
Latest Jobs Report Points To Economic Uncertainty
And unfortunately, recent jobs data reveals increased uncertainty and potential declines for the U.S. economy. According to Friday’s jobs report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the unemployment rate has been steadily increasing, rising to 4.3% in August, up from 4.2% in July and 4.1% in June. What’s more, only 22,000,000 jobs were added in August, which is well below the 80,000,000 predicted by portfolio analysis platform FactSet.
For women aged 20 and over, the unemployment rate increased from 3.7% in August 2024 to 3.8% in August 2025. While this rate remains lower than that of men aged 20 and over (which increased from 3.9% to 4.1% over the same period), men continue to have higher overall labor force participation. As of August, there were 84,280,000 employed men aged 20 and over, compared to 73,881,000 employed women in the same age range.
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The lower unemployment rate among women compared to men can partly be attributed to which industries experienced the most job gains in August. According to Friday’s BLS report, there’s been overall job growth in the healthcare sector. As previously reported, women tend to dominate healthcare roles, a trend supported by BLS data. According to the BLS report, women made up 76.6% of healthcare workers in July and 76.7% in August. Yet, as also noted in this author’s previous reporting, while women make up the majority of healthcare workers, men continue to dominate the highest-paid roles in the sector.
Research has also shown that women are beginning to surpass men in college completion. According to data from the Pew Research Center, as of 2024, 47% of women aged 25 to 34 hold a bachelor’s degree, compared to just 37% of men in the same age group. BLS data emphasizes the growing value of higher education in the labor market. The unemployment rate among individuals over 25 with a bachelor’s degree or higher is 2.7%. In contrast, the unemployment rate for those over 25 with a high school diploma is now at 4.3%. As more women attain higher levels of education, they may be better positioned to access a greater share of employment opportunities, even through periods of uncertainty.
Women Are Overlooked During Economic Downturns, Even When They Step Up
While the BLS data shows some promise for working women gaining momentum in hiring despite discouraging employment figures, we cannot disregard historical patterns. According to LinkedIn’s research, fewer women leaders are typically hired during economic downturns because female job applicants are often regarded as “lower-priority candidates,” resulting in them receiving a smaller share of job offers during these periods. The researchers clarify that this isn’t due to women being less likely to apply for leadership positions during these times. In fact, they found the opposite to be true, discovering that more women apply for high-level roles during periods of economic uncertainty. Rather, Lara and Baird find that this pattern is primarily due to “the actions and decisions of firms and hirers” rather than a reflection of women’s efforts to secure employment. Thus, they conclude that to address it, efforts must focus on employers.
While LinkedIn’s working paper highlights the danger of losing significant ground in women’s progress in the workplace during times of uncertainty, there are also some key, promising and actionable takeaways from the data. For one, it echoes the Pew Research Center’s findings, emphasizing that “the upward progress in women’s representation in leadership hires remains intact, even in male-dominated industries.” And notably, the research also shows that industries with more balanced gender representation are less likely to perpetuate this trend, and therefore less likely to worsen gender inequities during economic downturns, revealing a potential solution to stopping this pattern: hire more women at every level.
Retaining and Hiring Women During Periods Of Economic Uncertainty
Lara and Baird offer several recommendations for companies to avoid hiring fewer women into leadership during times of economic downturn. This includes updating hiring practices to be more targeted and gender diverse, eliminating obstacles for internal candidates seeking promotions, developing mentorship programs, and building out company diversity training.
The researchers also suggest that companies implement policies encouraging work-life balance, such as flexible work options and parental leave. This could include offering interim or fractional leadership roles, which allow women to access leadership opportunities on a part-time or temporary basis.
Further, new research on the importance of peer groups—highlighted in a recent article from Yale Insights—found that women who have more peers in their MBA programs are more likely to advance to senior management roles. Author Menaka Hampole explains that this is because “women with more women peers in business school were more likely to choose firms that are more supportive of women, which in turn increased their likelihood of reaching senior management positions.” Thus, creating women-centric MBA peer groups could open new doors for women at the top, especially as more women attain higher levels of education, but the real key here is for more companies to adopt women-friendly policies that support women’s advancement.
Incredible strides are being made to uplift more women into leadership. Yet as the latest U.S. job market report signals economic uncertainty, it’s crucial that businesses take steps to avoid exacerbating gender inequity, especially in the face of potential downturns. To ensure that gender equity continues to advance, companies should actively update hiring practices, promote work-life balance policies, and foster supportive peer networks. By doing so, organizations can unlock the full potential of women leaders and build a more inclusive, resilient workforce that thrives even in challenging economic times.