The Month of March
The 2017 theme for National Women’s History Month honors women who have successfully challenged the role of women in both business and the paid labor force. Women have always worked, but often their work has been undervalued and unpaid.
Below are some amazing women that truly were Trailblazers for all women in labor and business:
Kate Mullany
1845-1906
Formed the nation’s first bona-fide all-female union when she organized over 300 of her fellow laundresses.
Lucy Gonzalez Parson
1853-1942
Labor organizer, radical socialist, and anarchist co-founded Industrial Workers of the World.
Maggie Walker
1864-1934
A community leader who encouraged individual self-help efforts and who chartered the first African American Women’s Bank
Addie L. Wyatt
1924-2012
An ordained minister, labor and civil rights leader and co-founder of the Coalition of Labor Union Women.
Barbara “Dusty” Roads
1928-Present
Helped to form the Association of Professional Flight Attendants (APFA) in 1977.
Norma Yeager
1930-Present
First women stockbroker who paved the way for women in the New York Stock Exchange.
Lilly Ledbetter
1938-Present
Civil rights activist who fought for equal pay and against sexual harassment.
Barbara Hackman Franklin
1940-Present
Harvard Business School graduate that pioneered the effort to increase the number of women in government.
Rebecca Anderson
1940-Present
Founding director of Handmade in America which revitalized and expanded employment opportunities for twenty-five counties in the state of North Carolina.
Alexis Herman
1947-Present
Labor leader, youngest director of the Women’s Bureau and appointed Secretary of Labor by President Carter.
Yvonne Walker
1959-Present
President of SEIU Local 100 and dedicated leader for the fight for economic and social justice
Andra Rush
1960-Present
Founder and CEO of Rush Group. She has made it her mission to “create sustainable job opportunities in underserved communities.”
Nina Vaca
1971-Present
Founder and CEO of Pinaccle Group and one of the few Latinas elected to serve as director of a publicly traded company.
