GlobeNewswire Inc | Oct 11, 2021 08:00AM EDT

October 11, 2021

Womens CoLab founding partners include Accenture, A Effect, Degreed, Ferrero, Harvard Business, Mastercard, Scary Mommy, The Achieve Institute, The Este Lauder Companies,The Female Quotient, UN Foundation, Walmart, Watermark and more.

Todays Womens CoLab event features leading women sharing insights and career advice.

NEW YORK, Oct. 11, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Despite tremendous strides toward greater gender equality and equity for women in the workplace, approximately 5.4 million jobs were lost by women in 2020 amid COVID-19. To help women re-enter the workforce and realize their career ambitions, Verizon and its partners today launched Womens CoLab, an initiative providing women with essential resources to help them achieve success in an increasingly digital economy.

In recent years, we have celebrated many history-making firsts that prove women belong in every room, at every table, and deserve to be seen and heard as equals, said Tami Erwin, CEO of Verizon Business. Unfortunately, the momentum we have achieved as a society has all but come to a standstill in the wake of the pandemic. With Womens CoLab, we are committed to giving women the support and resources they need to reach their career aspirations and thrive professionally.

The Womens CoLab community, led by Verizon, launches today on International Day of the Girl with a virtual celebratory event featuring top women executives from Accenture, Disney, Bank of America, The Este Lauder Companies, Ferrero, Mastercard, Scary Mommy and Walmart. During the panels and sessions, they will share lessons learned and career insights that helped them achieve success. The event can be viewed at no cost from 12 PM to 3:30 PM ET on the Womens CoLabs YouTube channel.

Beyond the launch event, Womens CoLab offers a library of resources and peer-to-peer support on WeAreWomensCoLab.com, available for free to any user. Powered by Degreed, the site provides hyper-relevant development and training resources from industry experts such as Harvard Business, The Achieve Institute, The Female Quotient, The A Effect, Blue Circle Leadership, and Scary Mommy, to help women to remain, re-enter and thrive in the workforce.

Additional content such as guest essays, live Q&As, workshops and career insights from leading women will be added regularly to cover the most pressing issues impacting women today. Womens CoLab also focuses on building a community of women, with interactive forums allowing for open conversation and support between members and participants.

Curated content topics include personal brand building, networking tips and tricks, work-life wellness, how to redefine your career and content specific for working mothers.

We need women in the workforce. We need their diverse perspectives and backgrounds, at all levels and across all industries, and we cant pursue real, lasting equality if we ask women to choose between having a career or managing their life, said Manon Brouillette, Chief Operating Officer and Deputy CEO, Verizon Consumer. A recent survey we commissioned found that close to 60 percent of women who want to re-enter the workforce cant afford the training to remain competitive. This is exacerbated by the fact that 72% of women are concerned about the difficulty of finding a job that matches their existing skillset. This is precisely the reason why I believe Womens CoLab can play an important role in helping women advance and succeed.

For more information about Womens CoLab, the live event or related resources, visit the new WeAreWomensCoLab.com website and join the community on LinkedIn, Twitter and Instagram.

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE, Nasdaq: VZ) was formed on June 30, 2000 and is one of the worlds leading providers of technology, communications, information and entertainment products and services. Headquartered in New York City and with a presence around the world, Verizon generated revenues of $128.3 billion in 2020. The company offers data, video and voice services and solutions on its award-winning networks and platforms, delivering on customers demand for mobility, reliable network connectivity, security and control.

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Media contact:Rebecca Lamingrebecca.laming@verizon.com(908) 227-7886