Number of the Day Women tend to fare better than men in most recessions. Not this one. Photo illustration, source: d3sign/Moment/Getty Images 54%: That’s women’s share of overall job losses due to Covid-19, despite making up only 39% of global employment, according to McKinsey. In the U.S., the employment rate for women fell by 17.8 percentage points, compared to a 15.8 percentage point drop for men, according to new research about how the pandemic has impacted women.