The Best Places for a Working Woman

According to The Economist, the United States ranks 12^th out of 26 wealthy countries for a woman to work. The results were determined using five indicators including how many men and women who had secondary education, the percentage of women who participate in the labor force, the gap between the earnings of men and women, the proportion of women in high level positions, and the cost of child care compared to the average wage. 

 

New Zealand came in first place, followed by Norway, Sweden, Canada, and Australia. Although Finland placed 7^th overall, it performed the best on measures regarding education. In Sweden, 78% of women participate in the labor force marking the highest rate out of all 26 countries. In Spain, the wage gap was only 6%, the lowest among all the countries. In contrast, Japan and South Korea were ranked quite low because there are few women in the country who hold high level senior positions.

Over a Third of American Companies are Hiring

Gallup tracks the percentage of employed Americans who report their company is hiring or laying off workers.  The most recent tally displays an improving job market, in which 35% of companies are hiring compared to 16% that are letting go of employees.  These percentages have hardly changed since four years ago, when 37% of companies were hiring and 16% were laying off.  However, since bottoming out at 24% in late 2009, the percentage of companies that were seeking employees has risen steadily to its current level.  Conversely, the percentage of companies laying off its workforce peaked in early 2009, and has since fallen consistently.