About Pennsylvania Women Work
Whether it’s a single mom struggling to provide for her family; a woman re-entering the workforce after 20 years; an immigrant adjusting to a new life; or someone faced with a challenging career transition; Pennsylvania Women Work is here to help lead individuals toward financial independence.
By empowering women – and men – with job search and interview skills, opportunities to build their confidence, and help setting and achieving both professional and personal goals, we help individuals find lasting employment that pays a family-sustaining wage through unique and life-changing programs.
Our Mission
The mission of Pennsylvania Women Work is to:
Transform women's lives through empowerment, employment and economic independence.
Our Vision
A future in which:
All women are empowered to join the workforce, earn equitable compensation and attain economic security.
By empowering women – and men – with job search and interview skills, opportunities to build their confidence, and help setting and achieving both professional and personal goals, we help individuals find lasting employment that pays a family-sustaining wage through unique and life-changing programs.
Our Mission
The mission of Pennsylvania Women Work is to:
Transform women's lives through empowerment, employment and economic independence.
Our Vision
A future in which:
All women are empowered to join the workforce, earn equitable compensation and attain economic security.
History
In the 1970s, divorce rates in the United States began to climb. Many women found themselves in a position where they needed to find a job to support themselves and their children. Among those affected were Laurie Shields, a 55-year-old widow, and Tish Sommers, a 57-year-old divorcée, who found it difficult to re-enter the workplace after spending many years at home raising their children. Shields and Sommers, like many women that made up this rapidly growing population of displaced homemakers, were too old for youth programs, but too young to receive Social Security payments. They weren't poor enough to receive welfare, but they barely had enough money to support themselves.
To raise awareness of these unique problems, Shields and Sommers assembled a national coalition of activists known as the Displaced Homemakers Network in 1979. Their motto became, “Don’t agonize, organize!” The group successfully lobbied 39 states and Congress to take action, which resulted in a federal grant allotted to the states that provided career development program funds for women.
Pennsylvania's displaced homemaker programs began operating in the early 1980s under the national Displaced Homemakers Network. When the national network disbanded, a dedicated group of women, headed by Mary Ann Eisenreich, branched off from the former national network and founded Pennsylvania Women Work. Headquartered in Pittsburgh, the organization established programs across Pennsylvania that provided career development and training through New Choices, Pennsylvania Women Work’s flagship program that teaches job readiness and fosters economic independence.
Since its founding, Pennsylvania Women Work has helped over 65,000 women in career transition overcome the economic, educational, and emotional obstacles to achieving meaningful employment.
To raise awareness of these unique problems, Shields and Sommers assembled a national coalition of activists known as the Displaced Homemakers Network in 1979. Their motto became, “Don’t agonize, organize!” The group successfully lobbied 39 states and Congress to take action, which resulted in a federal grant allotted to the states that provided career development program funds for women.
Pennsylvania's displaced homemaker programs began operating in the early 1980s under the national Displaced Homemakers Network. When the national network disbanded, a dedicated group of women, headed by Mary Ann Eisenreich, branched off from the former national network and founded Pennsylvania Women Work. Headquartered in Pittsburgh, the organization established programs across Pennsylvania that provided career development and training through New Choices, Pennsylvania Women Work’s flagship program that teaches job readiness and fosters economic independence.
Since its founding, Pennsylvania Women Work has helped over 65,000 women in career transition overcome the economic, educational, and emotional obstacles to achieving meaningful employment.
