Many women choose the armed forces as an employer. Self-employment is also an occupational option for many women. There were 3.4 million self-employed women working in nonagricultural industries in 1999. In 1999, 3.7 million women were multiple job holders . In February 1999, 2.9 million women were contingent workers.
Many contingent workers have alternative work arrangements .
Women continue to earn less than men. In other words, women earned only 77 percent of what men earned. Women contribute significantly to their families' incomes. Families with the wife in the paid labor force had the highest median income of all family types. Large numbers of women work for low pay and are the sole providers for their families.