January Jobs Report: Unemployed Women Struggle Amid Labor Market Anxiety

In the first month of 2026, the unemployment rate inched down to 4.3% according to new data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Approximately 130,000 jobs were added in January, and 7.4 million workers were unemployed — a significant increase in unemployment since the Trump administration took office. Among women workers 20 years and over, the unemployment rate was 4.0% compared to 3.6% in January 2025 and 3.1 million women were unemployed.

“At a time of increased economic anxiety and announcements of major layoffs at corporations like Amazon and UPS, a strong unemployment insurance system is more important than ever,” said Rebecca Dixon, president and CEO of the National Employment Law Project (NELP). “Yet unemployed women are too often excluded by a system that was built decades ago to serve full-time, non-disabled, male workers without caregiving responsibilities. Policymakers must act to strengthen unemployment insurance to better serve all workers.”

New research published in January by NELP and the 75 Million Campaign reveals that unemployment insurance can be a lifeline for women who lose their jobs, but that unemployed women are less likely to receive benefits than their male counterparts and bring home lower benefits when they do. Black, Latina, Asian, and Indigenous women confront even more significant obstacles to receiving adequate support after a job loss.

“As a result of pay discrimination and occupational segregation, women—particularly women of color, women with disabilities, trans and queer women, and other marginalized women—are more likely to work in low-paying positions with inconsistent schedules,” said Amy Traub, senior researcher and policy analyst at NELP and the author of the policy brief. “In some states, that can be enough to completely shut them out of eligibility for unemployment insurance benefits. In some states, barriers also include a requirement that workers seek and accept full-time jobs to qualify for unemployment benefits (effectively disqualifying those seeking part-time work, who are more likely to be women) and a failure to recognize reasons that disproportionately compel women to leave a job, such as losing access to child care or experiencing sexual harassment.”

The unemployment rate among Black women was 6.3% in January, nearly twice the rate for white men (3.3%). The unemployment rate was 4.7% for Latina women and 3.4% for white women. The release did not include a monthly unemployment rate for Asian women, but Asian workers overall had an employment rate of 4.1%. Continuing disparities in unemployment rates are a result of structural racism and sexism in the U.S. labor market.

The Unemployment Insurance Modernization and Recession Readiness Act, sponsored Senators Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Michael Bennet (D-CO) and Representative Don Beyer (D-VA) would address a host of ways the UI system falls short for women. The bill sets nationwide standards for UI, mandating that states offer at least 26 weeks of unemployment benefits, raising benefit amounts to replace a greater share of workers’ prior earnings, and increasing coverage for part-time workers, temp workers, and workers whose earnings fluctuate over time. The bill also establishes a new, federally funded Jobseekers Allowance to support jobless workers who would not otherwise be covered by unemployment insurance—including mothers returning to the workforce after time spent caring for children. Finally, the bill modernizes the Extended Benefits program that makes additional weeks of unemployment benefits available in times of high unemployment. State policymakers across the country should also act to improve their state unemployment insurance systems to better support workers and the economy.