The early days of the pandemic were terrible for all American workers – but the job losses that followed had a truly catastrophic impact on women. Thirty years of progress in women’s workforce participation was practically destroyed in just nine months, according to the founder of the nonprofit Girls Who Code, Reshma Saujani.

A lack of childcare infrastructure was one of the biggest reasons why the lockdowns were economically disastrous for women: Schools were closed, children were home, and because of stereotypical gender roles and inequitable parenting responsibilities, millions of women had no choice but to leave the workforce to take care of their kids. To make matters worse, a massive childcare shortage right now is taking a toll on American families. More than 16,000 childcare providers closed permanently between December 2019 and March 2021, and the average annual cost of childcare is now more than $10,000, which is totally out of reach for most families.

At a time when nearly 9 out of every 10 American women are becoming mothers, our country’s childcare crisis is hurting the economy. Not only does the childcare shortage decrease the available pool of workers, but workers who have left the workforce have less money to spend, driving down consumer demand for all businesses. And when consumer demand dries up, businesses have to cut costs, lay off employees, and in some cases, shut down entirely: It’s a vicious cycle that ripples out and slows down the economy, affecting us all.

That’s why Saujani created the Marshall Plan for Moms – an agenda that calls for a large-scale investment in American families and the childcare industry. We’re working with advocates to put the Marshall Plan for Moms into action, and we need your help: Will you send a message to your U.S. representative and senators today?

Despite the fact that workers have seen improving jobs numbers and wages for the last two years, the gender gap is still huge. While male workers have entirely recovered the jobs that they lost in the early pandemic, as of February of this year, nearly 2 million women who left the workforce during the pandemic were still out of work, including a disproportionate number of women of color.

But there’s a solution to these problems: The Marshall Plan for Moms calls for national paid sick and family leave laws, investments in quality childcare, and an expanded child tax credit like the one passed by Congress last year. These policies would allow moms to reenter the workforce. And it comes down to the simple idea that we always emphasize at Civic Action: When more people can participate in our economy, everyone benefits.

The Marshall Plan for Moms is a vital step toward a stronger, more inclusive economy. Please, send a message to your U.S. representative and senators and demand that they take action to increase access to affordable childcare. >>

Thanks for taking action with us.

Paul