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To understand why women are still struggling to catch up to men financially, the authors Josie Cox Turn to the past. She didn’t have to look far back.
The Women’s Business Ownership Act, which allowed women to obtain business financing without a male co-signer, was not passed until 1988, financial journalist Cox writes in her new book.Women’s Money Power: The Rise and Fall of Economic EqualityBefore 1969, women were not allowed to attend Ivy League universities, and as recently as 1978, women could be fired for being pregnant.
“Pregnancy discrimination remains rampant in corporate America,” Cox said.
Cox’s book traces women’s centuries-long struggle to gain economic equality with men, bringing many fascinating characters out of history’s shadows along the way. She told CNBC this month that the search for justice was clearly still a long way off.
(Interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.)
“Money is the measure of power”
Anne Nova: You give a lot of examples of how women have needed men to participate in the economy in the past. Why is our society set up this way?
Josie Cox: In a society built around capitalist principles, money is the measure of power. Historically, women have not had as much power as men.
In my book, I write about the concept of “coverage.”
Coverture is a legal practice rooted in English law that states that no woman or girl has an independent legal identity. When a girl is born, she is affected by her father’s identity, and when she gets married, she is affected by her husband’s identity. Under the Hidden Law, a woman did not even have rights to her own body, which meant that any wages she earned through her labor legally belonged to her husband.
Gradually, the power of the covering diminished. But its influence remains even today – the tradition of women taking their husband’s surname through marriage is a clear example.
Women’s Money Power by Josie Cox
AN: As late as 1978, you wrote about women being fired from their jobs because they were pregnant. What problems does this cause for women? Are things better today?
Jason: Before 1978, we had no way of knowing how many women were fired because of their pregnancy.
Many women working in the paid labor market hide their pregnancy as long as possible to avoid being fired. When they are laid off, times are tough for many people who need money.
Nowadays, it is certainly illegal to fire a woman for being pregnant. But as I write in the book, women still have to deal with more subtle biases and discrimination. Pregnancy discrimination remains rampant in corporate America.
one: Why did the annulment of Roe v. Wade become a familiar story to women of previous generations? What are the economic consequences of this decision?
Jason: Access to health care and reproductive rights are inextricably linked to women’s economic empowerment and personal freedom. This decision therefore deals a tragic blow to the progress we have made on gender equality over the past 50 years.
It will be some time before we can measure the exact costs (financial and otherwise) of the strict abortion restrictions that have been in effect since the Dobbs decision, but it is fair to say that they are significant.
The economy is ‘failing menopausal women’
AN: In what areas do we still need to see more women?
Jason: On a lot! Women still make up only about one in 10 Fortune 500 CEOs. Men still far outnumber women in political leadership positions.
We know that when the visible image of a leader does not change, biases about who and what makes a good leader intensify. Therefore, it is crucial to have more women in these positions of power.
We also need to make sure we dispel the absurd notion that men should not be the primary caregivers or perform as much unpaid work as women.
AN: As you write, how is our economy “leaving menopausal women in a difficult situation?”
Jason: Menopause is still an unspoken topic in most workplaces, but the reality is that it’s important to acknowledge it.
As I write in my book, the age at which women tend to enter menopause (around 45 to 55) is also generally the age at which they gain enough professional and life experience to enter the most senior and most lucrative jobs. The economic firepower of these people is immense. But in many ways, the parameters of the workday and workplace don’t apply to them.
AN: Your book is filled with many great stories of women throughout history fighting for gender equality. Can you tell me your favorite one?
Jason: Dexter McCormick provided nearly all of the funding for the research and development needed to bring the first oral contraceptive pill to the U.S. market. She is stranger than fiction.
Long before contraceptives became widely available in the United States—and at a time when contraceptives were outright illegal in some places—McCormick went to Europe, pretended to be a buyer of medical supplies, bought diaphragms in bulk, and sewed them on. On the lining of underwear.
She wanted women to be in control of their bodies and their lives, and she recognized early on what we all now know: that access to reproductive health care is a condition for women to fully realize their personal, professional, and financial goals.
McCormick was already in his eighties when the drug was approved by the FDA (U.S. Food and Drug Administration) for contraceptive use in May 1960. She went to the doctor and got a prescription. Not because she needs it, of course, but because she can.
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