COVID Relief

The Problem:

• Over-represented in critically necessary fields, women are 75% of hospital workers, 93% of child care workers, 90% of people employed in private homes, and two-thirds of grocery store cashiers and retail staff.
• State and local governments provide vital services that are even more necessary in the current crisis—including education, social services, and public health protections—and they employ over 17.4 million workers, six in 10 of whom are women.
• Women accounted for 55% of the 20.5 million jobs lost in April 2020, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics and unemployment rates for women of color are staggeringly high.
  • Nearly one in seven Black women ages 20 and over were unemployed in June 2020.
  • Similarly, more than one in seven Latinas ages 20 and over were unemployed in June 2020.
• The pandemic has threatened the collapse of our child care system with hundreds of thousands of child care jobs and businesses on the line. Without it, families will not have the necessary support to go to work or school.
• This historic, devastating pandemic requires critical stimulus interventions and the relief so far has fallen short.

The Solution:

• Provide more funding for states and local governments to protect and support their communities.
• Ensure unemployment benefits do not expire until economic conditions improve.
• Provide at least $50 billion in COVID-19 relief for the child care sector.