History

History of Wider Opportunities for Women

Jane Fleming, co-founder of WOW

(Excerpted from Women in Washington: Advocates for Public Policy

(Sage Yearbooks in Women’s Policy Studies Volume 7. 1983 pages 79-90).

When a group of us in Washington DC, first conceived of Wider Opportunities for Women in 1964 we naively thought that all we had to do to open up the labor market to women was encourage part-time, flexible work patterns that would accommodate women’s dual responsibility for job and family. We were largely unaware that the achievement of equal access and opportunity for all women would require a more extensive, more complex effort than we had anticipated.

WOW’s mission has always been to provide the services women need to gain access to equal employment opportunities, and to break down the systemic barriers that keep women from enjoying these opportunities. Our present services are directed toward social change, skills training for jobs that women have not held before, technical assistance – particularly for employers – and demonstration employment programs that provide the basis for policy development. WOW also emphasizes public information, education, and advocacy designed to reach policymakers in and out of government.

WOW has become a leader in women’s employment. We have grown from an all-volunteer group focused on part-time work into a nonprofit organization with a paid staff, a career center serving hundreds of professional women annually, several training programs including one for low-income minority women, and a budget supported by individual contributions, grants, government contracts, and publication orders.

In its early days, WOW received much of its support from women in key government positions who worked with us to improve opportunities for women employed by the federal government. For example, the Civil Service Commission accepted unpaid volunteer work as valid work experience for federal employment – a major achievement that continues to benefit both women and men.

WOW has always recognized that all women are economically disadvantaged. Our constituency includes reentry women, low-income and minority women, young and older women, offenders, handicapped and professional women. It is not generally acknowledged that women must overcome serious barriers that men do not face in order to become economically independent – that women need more than a job.

Our early program experience taught us that while excellent training and support services were sufficient to secure a job, employment did not necessarily bring women economic security. Armed with new data from the Department of Labor that helped to focus attention on women’s unequal economic status, we worked to desegregate the job market for our trainees.

WOW was able to place women in nontraditional jobs because of an amendment to Executive Order 11246, issued by President Lyndon Johnson. The order included women in the affirmative action requirements that federal contractors had to meet, thus giving us real leverage in persuading employers to open up traditionally male jobs to women.

Most of WOW’s programs were publicly funded, predominately by the Comprehensive Employment and Training Act (CETA) and the Vocational Education Act. When the legitimacy of our CETA-funded training program for nontraditional employment was challenged on the grounds of alleged reverse discrimination against men, a joint effort was made to include sex-equity language in public employment and training legislation. This provision was later referred to as the “WOW paragraph.”

WOW initiated the Women’s Work Force Network, composed of women’s employment programs across the country. The network’s purposes were to provide for information and resource exchange, make available technical assistance in both organizational and programmatic areas, monitor public policy affecting women’s employment, and provide information and advocacy in the public policy arena. Joint efforts involving programming, funding, and public policy helped us to see the enormous potential in this kind of organized collaboration. Making our common cause the issues vital to women and work has led to a national organization that is a powerful voice for women and a force for change.

Jane’s words are a dramatic reminder of the distance we have traveled since WOW was founded and the battles we have won. For more than four decades, we have fought for women workers and their families. We have improved their access to education and training, opened doors to non-traditional jobs, and linked job seekers to the work supports they need to improve their economic status. Our efforts literally span the country. Yet, despite our achievements, an enormous amount of poverty still exists in the U.S. and millions of working families across America – many headed by women – still struggle to meet their basic needs for food, shelter, transportation and healthcare.

Today, WOW is leading the national discussion about what truly constitutes self-sufficiency for working families. We are working with our network of state partners to design and implement programs that move low-income women and their families – not just out of poverty – but toward true economic independence as well. This was the vision of our founders and it is one we will fight for until it is a reality for all women.