WASHINGTON —  August saw 212,000 women join the labor force, a reversal of the previous month’s significant loss, according to new National Women’s Law Center (NWLC) analysis of monthly jobs data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. 

Despite gains made in August, there are still 633,000 fewer women aged 20 and over in the labor force now than in January. In comparison, there are 68,000 fewer men in the labor force now than in January. 

“While August was a better month for women in the labor force than July’s abysmal data showed, we are still far behind where we were at the start of the year,” said Jasmine Tucker, vice president of research at NWLC. “The continued exit of women from the labor force has dire impacts on our economic health and prosperity as a country. We should also be asking whether the high cost of daily necessities and limited availability of child care is making it harder for women to stay in their jobs. This monthly jobs data is one look into a much larger economic picture of how unequipped our labor force remains for working women.”

Additional stats of note:

• There was a loss of 5,000 federal government jobs in August. The data released today shows that between January 2025 and July 2026, women lost 171,000 federal government jobs. Women make up 46.5% of the federal government workforce.
• The retail trade sector gained 1,400 jobs in August. Women lost 21,400 jobs, while men gained 22,800 jobs. Women make up 48.1% of the retail trade workforce.

Also flagging ahead of Labor Day on Monday, Sept. 7, NWLC has updated its union fact sheet demonstrating ways unions help women in the workforce. This essential resource comes at a time when working women, particularly unionized ones, remain targeted by the Trump administration. 

“This Labor Day, we recognize all the ways unions support working women at a time when their livelihoods are under attack by the Trump administration’s anti-worker and anti-union policies,” said Layla Zonouzy, research associate at NWLC. “The updated data shows that the collective power of union membership helps members achieve higher wages, better benefits, working conditions, and the ability to enforce their rights.This leads to better economic outcomes for union members than for nonunion members, allowing union members to thrive.”

For more information about how unions help working women, consult the newly released fact sheet.

To speak with a NWLC expert for Labor Day coverage, please contact Serena Zets at [email protected]. 

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