Again, that was an effort that we took the leadership on with the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs and the Employment and Training Administration. Specifically, in both sets of these regulations and particularly the apprenticeship regs, we have given high priority to the waiving of the age requirement as 'constituting affirmative action under the regulations as an attempt to help more midlife women enter into the skilled trades area. We have also been very active with the Office of Federal Contract and Compliance Programs on targeting industries where there has been an underrepresentation of women and minorities, with particular emphasis on where women are concentrated in their midlife in low paying jobs. This result has yielded compliance action in the banking industry and in particular, in the coal mining industry in parts of Virginia and Tennessee. In addition to that, in line with targeting broader based industries to look at the employment patterns of women in their midlives, we've also mounted special outreach programs to insure that women will take advantage of the opportunities that can become available to them in areas like the coal mining industry, as one example. We have also moved to incorporate in the CETA legislation new language that speaks to the need for retraining and to concepts of upward mobility for the first time. And we think that this language, in particular, will also be of particular service to women in their midlives who are in dire need of retraining for existing job opportunities. Shall I go on? Mr. GRASSLEY. Well, you have been very good in giving us examples. Now, have these resulted in formal agreements being signed? MS. HERMAN. Oh yes. We couldn't have had the ability to move forward on them without the formal agreements initially. [See appendix. 1, p. 118, for material subsequently received from Ms. Herman.] Mr. GRASSLEY. I do not know whether you have had an opportunity to see it, but in the Saturday, May 5, Washington Post, Jack Anderson, in most of his column, refers to what is headlined "Women Seeking More U.S. Contracts." On this topic he explains how the Small Business Administration hasn't filled the goal of the Carter administration very well in regard to 8(a) contracts. I was wondering if you were aware of this and if it's an accurate description of what the situation is today. If it is accurate, is there anything that you can do or will do to see that the problem is solved. [See appendix 7, p. 251 for the Jack Anderson column entitled "Women Seeking More U.S. Contracts."] MS. HERMAN. I did see Mr. Anderson's column and I must point out first of all that the increase of women participating in the SBA program has gone from 5 percent to approximately 13 percent today. While we certainly recognize that that is not enough and not where we need to be, I had the opportunity of participating on the task force that Mr. Anderson references in his column and we made several recommendations to the President in the report, that was entitled. "The Bottom Line: Unequal Enterprise." We certainly concur, in part, with what Mr. Anderson has stated regarding the overall status of women enterpreneurs today. Those statistics were accurate and I believe were drawn directly from the report we submitted to the President. Some of the recommendations in that report have already been implemented by President Carter. We are anticipating very shortly the announcement of an Executive policy that will do more to move women into the field of entrepreneurships but also, to take better advantage of Federal contracts in general. One very basic initiative that had to be achieved was simply the retrieval of data we did not have in the Federal system to date, even a monitoring system where we could examine and where we could track the amount of contracts, the number of contracts, that were going to women in the Government. As of February 1, all of our Federal agencies were directed to come in compliance with one of those recommendations that had to do with data retrieval, so we are now in a position to at least monitor where we can make the changes and what we need to do. I'm not in a position, of course, to discuss the contents of the President's Executive order, but I do believe in terms of the recommendations that were contained in that report that we will see a stronger policy on the part of the administration for women in business. Mr. GRASSLEY. Thank. Thank you, Madame Chairman. Mr. BURTON. I have one question which I don't think you can answer. I guess it is a statement. The Government just really does not pay any attention to this issue. MS. HERMAN. Which issue? The one we're talking about? Mr. BURTON. The issue of midlife women. I mean, there is some lipservice paid and people like you are trying to do something, but there is no real commitment to the problem, no problematic commitment that I can see. Ms. HERMAN. There has been no real attention to date focused on the concerns of women in their midlife. No. And I think that the Civil Rights Commission Age Discrimination Study of 1977 stated this very accurately. Mr. BURTON. Well I view it-I mean even leaving the discrimination apart aside; if there was a role reversal where the man stayed home and the woman was the worker, if the man had no skills except housework or whatever, and he was caring for a child and found himself a widower he would be facing the same problems. So, notwithstanding sex discrimination, they just aren't paying attention to the problem of people in this area. Ms. HERMAN. I hope it is not my fault. No; it is not my fault. But I would certainly think that these hearings and other efforts, such as the displaced homemaker legislation that we were fortunate enough to pass in CETA, is an attempt and is a beginning to really focus on the concerns of midlife women. I also know that as a part of Secretary Marshall's overall commitment and concern to the needs of the unemployed and the underemployed in this country, he very much believes in the targeting approach, and that is taking a look at special segments in the work force who are in need of specialized services and specialized approaches; and I think that to the extent we have heard excellent testimony regarding the special needs of midlife women, that this is certainly something that we intend and we've begun to incorporate in our own Department of Labor programs. Mr. BURTON, Well, midlife women should be covered under part of the CETA law where the Secretary of Labor has got discretionary funds. Do you know what kind of a commitment he makes to that? Ms. HERMAN. Well, it was out of the discretionary funds that we made the initial $5 million commitment for displaced homemakers, Those were discretionary funds. Mr. BURTON. Anything other than that? Do you know how much? I think he's got over $300 million to spend in title III of CETA. Do you know how much he puts into midlife women? Ms. HERMAN. No, I don't know how much specifically outside of displaced homemaker programs. I'm sure you know Mr. BURTON. Could you supply us with that? Ms. HERMAN. I Could supply that for the record, because so much of those funds are formula allocated anyway. Mr. BURTON. But I mean they give very short shrift to the elderly that are included in CETA, and I just wonder whether they give any kind of a fair share to women. Thank you. MS. HERMAN. We'll be happy to supply that for the record. [The following material was subsequently received from Ms. Herman:] A total of $372 million is available under CETA Title III for fiscal year 1979. This amount includes $155 million legislatively mandated for Indian and Native American programs and for migrant and seasonal farmworker programs. A total of $44 million is for essential program support activities including technical assistance and training, labor market information, and research and evaluation activities. This leaves a balance of $173 million. Among the activities funded from this balance are those legislatively or Congressionally required such as training, job search and relocation allowances for trade impacted workers, employment and training assistance for offenders, persons with limited English speaking ability, minorities, handicapped individuals, veterans programs including the Disabled Veterans Outreach Program, and $5 million for the displaced homemakers program. In addition to the $5 million for displaced homemakers, the Community Service Employment for Older Americans program, authorized under Title V of the Older Americans Act of 1965, as amended and administered by the Employment and Training Administration, provides part-time work for low-income persons aged 55 and over. Of the 47,500 persons currently enrolled in this program, approximately 63 percent or 29,925 are females aged 55 and over funded at an average cost of $139 million. MS. OAKAR. Thank you. Ms. Ferraro. Ms. FERRARO. We've been talking about a figure of 3 million displaced homemakers throughout the country. But if you realistically look at the whole picture, the figure that I heard was between 10 and 30 million potential displaced homemakers. Let's talk about the CETA program again. Realistically, can CETA handle that many people? MS. HERMAN. I don't know that the system could absorb that many people if that is the accurate number in terms of displaced homemakers. I can tell you specifically what the $5 million is designed to do in terms of setting up centers under II, VI, and a few national programs out of title III. And what we would hope that we would be able to do is to fund a few national models directly out of the Secretary's discretionary moneys that could, hopefully, serve as models for other prime sponsors to replicate through their local funds and local communities; and at the same time that we could take $3.25 million and begin to encourage the kind of program development now at the local level with prime sponsors by offering matching moneys, by offering them some incentive to begin to set up displaced homemaker programs because I think with it being an issue that by and large a number of our communities are not acquainted to the extent that they need to be with the concerns. We think that this approach will serve as a leverage for us to get prime sponsors to do more planning in this area. We don't know yet. It is a demonstration approach. We are only hoping that it will work. Ms. FERRARO. So that, obviously there is going to have to be something done in another direction besides CETA. MS. HERMAN. Very definitely. Yes. Ms. FERRARO. I don't know if you were here when I mentioned my displaced homemakers bill. I may be putting my neck out asking you this but, could you give me some thoughts on that idea? MS. HERMAN. To date, of course, the administration has not taken a position on that but from our vantage point in the Bureau we are doing what we can to support that as a concept. Ms. FERRARO. There is also a field memorandum to the regional administrators of CETA with reference to the steps that are being taken to develop more accurate information with respect to displaced homemakers, the size, geographical distribution and characteristics of the displaced homemakers population. Could you tell me what those steps are? MS. HERMAN. I'm sorry? Ms. FERRARO. In a memorandum it stated that steps are being taken to get more accurate information on our displaced homemakers population. What are these steps being taken? MS. HERMAN. The main step to which the field memorandum refers was an analysis of existing data on displaced homemakers. We commissioned an analysis of special tabulations from the Census Bureau's 1976 Survey of Income and Education to determine estimates of the number of displaced homemakers, their age, race and eligibility under CETA, title B. The survey I referred to earlier, completed by the Displaced Homemaker Network, looked at the model programs in terms of what those programs said worked best for them going all the way from peer counseling support to total family involvement in some of the programs. It also examined the kinds of jobs that the existing programs were able to obtain for the displaced homemakers; we looked at any special training programs that were presently in place, at any special emphases that were being given to nontraditional job training progams in particular, and looked at where they are receiving funds from presently. Our analysis of census data with estimates on numbers of displaced homemakers will be sent back to prime sponsors, giving them a better data base and a better feel for the kinds of things that they might be able to do in their own local communities based on the survey. Ms. FERRARO. Could I ask you to submit a copy of that for our record? MS. HERMAN. Yes. [See appendix 1, p. 152 for material subsequently received from Ms. Herman.] Ms. FERRARO. I have no more questions. Thank you, Madame Chairman. Ms. OAKAR. Father Drinan? Mr. DRINAN. Thank you very much, Madame Chairman. I want to congratulate the witness on a splendid statement. I want to commend the Chair and the staff of the subcommittee for the fine material which they have prepared and the document on midlife women. Ms. Herman, your testimony speaks for itself. It is very comprehensive but I just wonder one thing: whether you could help the subcommittee in its quest for some type of a consensus as to what specific actions might be recommended. If you had to emphasize one or two things in your final statement that would be doable in this Congress that should have the support of this particular subcommittee, what particular items would you recommend for our attention? MS. HERMAN. Well, I would certainly recommend serious attention be given to Secretary Califano's report already that lays out some of the changes that you need to consider in the Social Security Act, also, S. 2095, which is the pension reform legislation which Secretary Marshall has already testified in support of, those provisions that clarify in that bill the language that has to do with the widows or a spouse's right to alimony and child support payment as a part of the pension plans; I think it is something that this Congress should, indeed, support. Mr. DRINAN. I thank you for that. Once again, I commend you and thank you for your splendid testimony. I yield the balance of my time. MS. OAKAR. Thank you, Father, and thank you again, Ms. Herman, for coming here today. We really appreciated your testimony. Our next and final witness is Lesley Dorman who is president of the Association of American Foreign Service Women. We want to apologize for the delay but we know that your testimony will be very, very worthwhile. As the subcommittee has surveyed the problems of midlife women, we have found that some groups within this broad segment of our population have certain unique problems which merit the attention of the American people. One such group that we have asked to testify is the Association of American Foreign Service. Women. The Nation depends very, very heavily upon its foreign service officers and I might add, upon their wives as well. Certain similar groups of women who accompany their husband in repeated changes of assignment at home and abroad, such as the wives of career military officers, share the problems that Mrs. Dorman will outline for us. Mrs. Dorman, you may proceed in whatever way you wish. If you can, summarize it. It will leave us more time for questions, but whatever is more comfortable for you. STATEMENT OF LESLEY DORMAN, PRESIDENT, ASSOCIATION OF AMERICAN FOREIGN SERVICE WOMEN Mrs. DORMAN. It is a very small statement so I'll read it in its entirety, if I may. Madame Chairman, members of the committee, thank you for the invitation to testify today. I am Lesley Dorman, president of the Association of American Foreign Service Women. I have accompanied my husband on his foreign service career for many years. We feel that our experience as Foreign Service women can throw light on the unfavorable impact of geographic mobility on midlife women. Millions of wives are struggling to cope with dependence on a mobile breadwinner whether in corporate, government or military life. The loss of our support systems-family members, friends, work colleagues, and fellow church members-helps create feelings of inadequacy, loneliness, anger, and its handmaidens, guilt and depression. Extended overseas service exacerbates these stresses and adds many more. We experience the alienation of culture shock, the isolation |