Ivanka Trump just celebrated the one-year anniversary of her signature policy, the Women’s Global Development and Prosperity Initiative. The senior White House adviser pointed out that the economy under President Donald Trump has opened up a host of employment opportunities for women.
“Women are thriving like never before,” Ivanka Trump said in an interview on CNBC’s “Closing Bell.” She then cited some data to show how women in the workforce have benefited under Donald Trump’s administration.
For instance, Ivanka said that the unemployment rate for women is at its lowest in 75 years. Last September, the unemployment rate for women was only 3.4 percent, the nation’s lowest since September 1953.
The unemployment rate rose slightly higher this January to 3.5 percent. However, it is still way below the 4.7 percent rate in January 2017 when Donald Trump was inaugurated.
Percentage-wise, Ivanka Trump also pointed out that there are now more women in the workforce than men. Based on the Labor Department’s figures, 50.04 percent of jobs in the U.S. were held by women as of December 2019.
This is the second time in U.S. history that there are more women in the workforce. Last year, 72 percent of new jobs went to women workers.
According to Ivanka Trump, the Trump administration’s success is possible because of “the fact that we’ve backed policies that not only create the growth but enable that type of economic opportunity.” She said that Donald Trump’s administration also supported “high-quality child care for parents who are working and can’t afford it” because it’s a work-related expense. Congress approved the $2.37 billion increase of the Child Care and Development Block Grant in 2018.
Another way that Donald Trump’s administration eased the lives of women workers is the bill signed into law in December giving 2.1 million federal workers 12 weeks of paid leave. “We’ve moved the ball more on paid family leave than in the 25 years since FMLA was passed,” Ivanka Trump explained referring to the 1993 Family and Medical Leave Act.
“So women are thriving in the Trump economy,” Ivanka Trump concluded. “And our track record … of success backs that up.”