In 2009, WCF reported that female Chiefs of Staff on the Hill had hit the glass ceiling: Three years of stagnant statistics showed no significant increase in the percentage of House Members with a female Chief of Staff.  Less than one-third of House Members’ Chiefs of Staff were women.
 This year, statistics reveal that the number of female Chiefs of Staff remains remarkably deficient:

• The percentage of House Members employing a woman Chief of Staff has stagnated over the last two years: Only 35 percent of Representatives have a female Chief of Staff.
• In the past four years, the percentage of male House Members with a female Chief of Staff has remained below one-third.
• The number of female Representatives with a woman Chief of Staff has increased throughout the last four years, but still lingers below 50 percent.
• Only one-quarter of Senators currently employ a female Chief of Staff.
• The percentage of male Senators employing a female Chief of Staff has actually decreased over the past four years, and is now estimated to be only 20 percent.

Out of over 530 Chiefs of Staff in Congressional offices on the Hill, less than 180 are women.

The Women’s Campaign Forum will host an evening to shed light on the lack of women in leadership positions on September 23, 2010 titled Ladder to the Top: Shattering the Glass Ceiling.

The event will be held in Washington, D.C. at the National Museum of Women in the Arts.  For more information or reservations, contact Erin L. Cutraro, WCF Vice President & Political Director, 314-827-6149.

The Women’s Campaign Forum is dedicated to advancing the political participation and leadership of women who support reproductive health choices for all.