From caring for children and older adults to domestic work like cooking and cleaning, unpaid work plays an essential role in our society and is predominantly performed by women
These contributions to U.S. economy are often omitted from calculations of economic output
In letter to Government Accountability Office, Casey requests inquiry that will show the importance of women’s unpaid work
Casey: “Without a formal accounting of unpaid work, it remains invisible and undervalued”
Washington, D.C. – Today, ahead of Mother’s Day weekend, U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA), Chairman of the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Subcommittee on Children and Families, sent a letter to the Government Accountability Office (GAO) requesting that the agency conduct an inquiry about the contributions women’s unpaid care and domestic and reproductive work make to the national economy. From caring for children and older adults to domestic work like cooking and cleaning, unpaid work plays an essential role in our society and is predominantly performed by women. Despite the critical importance of unpaid work, these contributions are omitted from most calculations of our Nation’s economic output. Chairman Casey’s letter asks GAO to undertake an effort to quantify women’s unpaid contributions to the American economy.
In the letter, Chairman Casey wrote, “Without a formal accounting of unpaid work, it remains invisible and undervalued. Although such work is critical to supporting the Nation’s children, older adults, and people with disabilities, it is often downplayed and undercut. Attributing value to care, domestic, and reproductive work can help recognize this work as important contributions to households and the economy.”
Chairman Casey has led efforts in the Senate to support both paid and unpaid caregivers. In January 2023, Chairman Casey introduced the Better Care Better Jobs Act, with 41 co-sponsors, to enhance Medicaid funding for home care services for older adults, people with disabilities, and injured workers. In March 2023, Chairman Casey held a hearing to draw attention to the caregiving crisis and examine the economic benefit of investing in Medicaid home and community-based services. Last month, alongside Senators Kaine and Baldwin, he introduced the Long-Term Care Workforce Support Act, which would tackle the caregiving crisis by reprioritizing long-term caregivers and supporting their work based on the value they bring to families across the Nation.
The signed PDF of the letter can be found HERE.
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