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For most of human history, women cared for the dead. They prepared bodies and guided families through grief. Then death became a business, and women were pushed out. In this episode of What Does It Profit?, Dr. Dawn Carpenter brings you inside the death care industry with Doris Amen and Alexandra Mosca, two New York funeral directors who have spent decades working with the dead and bereaved in an industry that once told them they didn't belong.  Today, women make up just 15 to 20 percent of funeral directors. The numbers are still small, but they are growing. Women aren't just entering the profession. They're reclaiming their role in death work and reshaping what it looks like.

In this episode of What Does It Profit?, Dr. Dawn Carpenter explores what happens when a business begins with a simple question. Where do people go to belong?   More women are starting businesses than ever before. Yet ownership does not always mean access. Women still face barriers to capital, growth, and recognition. In spaces like game store ownership, those gaps are even more visible.   Whitney Wolfe did not set out to become an entrepreneur. She set out to create a place where people could gather, connect, and feel at ease. That idea became Last Place on Earth, a Brooklyn game store that opened just as the world shut down. Through uncertainty and reinvention, she built a thriving community. Then she did it again with Third Place from the Sun.   This is a story about more than games. It is about how connection creates value. It is about building spaces where people are invited in, not kept out.   Because the strongest businesses are not only places where people spend. They are places where people belong.

A board game may look simple. A set of pieces. A set of rules. A way to win. But every game is a system. It teaches us what to value, how to compete, and what success looks like. In this episode of What Does It Profit?, we follow the unexpected journey of Elizabeth Hargrave, a health policy consultant turned award-winning game designer, whose hit board game Wingspan reshaped an entire industry. What began as a simple idea, a game about birds, became one of the most successful and celebrated board games of all time, selling over two million copies and opening the door for more women in game design. But this story is about more than one game. It's about who gets to design systems and whose ideas shape the rules we all live by. In an industry where women create fewer than one percent of games, Hargrave's success signals both how far we have come and how far we still have to go. From early pioneers like Elizabeth Magie, the creator of The Landlord's Game (the anti-capitalist precursor to Monopoly), to today's emerging designers, women have always been part of this story, even when they were written out of it. This episode asks a deeper question at the heart of work and economic life: not just who plays the game, but who designs it. Because when new voices shape the rules, the game itself begins to change.

In Season 6 of What Does It Profit?, Dr. Dawn Carpenter explores dignity at work by stepping inside industries where women are still underestimated and often unwelcome. In this episode, we meet Aine O'Dwyer, a civil engineer and the CEO of Enovate Engineering. Raised on a dairy farm in Ireland, Aine learned early the value of discipline, perseverance, and hard work. Those lessons carried her across the Atlantic to the New Jersey Institute of Technology, where she pursued civil engineering while playing college basketball. Engineering classrooms were still overwhelmingly male, but Aine was undeterred. She built a career from the ground up, beginning as a field engineer and eventually leading major infrastructure projects across the New York region. Today, her firm helps design and manage the construction of bridges and other critical structures. For Aine, the work is more than technical. Every bridge represents a system carefully designed to endure.  But the bridges she builds are not only made of steel and concrete. They are also bridges of confidence and opportunity for the next generation of women entering engineering. Aine's story reminds us that economic life is not just about what we build, but about who gets to build it. Because the structures that shape our world are not only physical, they are moral as well. And every one of them raises the same question: What does it profit?

In Season 6 of What Does It Profit?, Dr. Dawn Carpenter goes inside industries where women are still underestimated and often unwelcome to explore how they are reshaping the meaning and structure of work. In this episode, we meet Judaline Cassidy, a master plumber, union leader, and founder of Tools & Tiaras, a nonprofit that introduces girls to welding, carpentry, plumbing, and the power of the skilled trades. Judaline was one of the only women in her plumbing program in Trinidad. She later broke barriers within New York's unions. Along the way, she developed a simple conviction that guides her work today: Jobs do not have genders. With every pipe she fits and every workshop she leads, Judaline is doing more than repairing infrastructure. She is challenging assumptions about who belongs in the trades and who gets to build the future. Through Tools & Tiaras, she is creating pathways for girls to see technical skill as strength, economic independence as attainable, and the trades as dignified, essential work. This episode explores what happens when women claim space in skilled labor and how expanding access strengthens the entire economy. Because when more people are invited to build, we all benefit from what gets built.

Less than 10% of truck drivers are women. The open road has long been seen as a man's world. But that is changing. In 2012, Jess Graham left an abusive relationship and enrolled in CDL training within days. Weeks later, she was licensed and on the road with her ten-year-old daughter, living together in the cab of a truck. For Jess, trucking was not just a job. It was a path to stability, speed, and self-determination. Every mile out there is different from your last mile. That's a new opportunity.  In 2019, she bought her own truck, a 1995 Freightliner known as the Black Widow. Ownership shifted the journey from survival to entrepreneurship. This episode explores trucking as an economic ladder, a lifestyle, and a test of endurance. It asks what it profits us when women claim space in industries that keep the economy moving. Because sometimes the road is not just about freight. It is about freedom.

What happens when women enter one of the most dangerous, male-dominated professions... and change it from the inside? In this episode of What Does It Profit, Dr. Dawn Carpenter goes from D.C. firehouses to wildfire lines to meet the women fighting fire with fire. At Camp Spark in Washington, D.C., Lieutenant Roshawnda Drake is building a pipeline for the next generation of women firefighters. Out West, Lou Bean, Heidi Leib, and Ashley Nalley are reshaping wildfire response and prescribed burning, often in systems never designed with them in mind. Together, they show how women are reshaping the fire service and why a more inclusive culture can save lives.

Women have always worked. But when women entered the U.S. labor force in large numbers during the 1970s, equal pay did not follow. In this episode of What Does It Profit?, Dr. Dawn Carpenter explores the history of women's labor rights—from the rise of the Nine to Five movement to the equal pay fight led by Lilly Ledbetter. Through organizing, unions, and the law, women challenged workplaces that relied on their labor while undervaluing their work. Featuring labor historian Lane Windham and the cultural legacy behind 9 to 5, this episode examines why wage gaps persist, why voice still matters, and what economic justice requires when essential work goes unpaid—or underpaid. Because the laws exist. The gaps remain. And when women do essential work without equal pay, the question endures: What does it profit?

This season on What Does It Profit, host Dr. Dawn Carpenter steps into the worlds where women are least expected—and often least welcomed. From firehouses to funeral homes, construction sites to game design studios, meet the women breaking barriers and reshaping the meaning of work itself. Their stories reveal courage, solidarity, and the power to build a more inclusive future of work. Subscribe now to hear how these women are redefining what's possible—and what's profitable—for us all.  Connect with us on LinkedIn to join the What Does It Profit community and keep the conversation going.

In this episode, we delve into the challenges faced by airline pilots and flight attendants, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic. With a national pilot shortage and increased workloads, safety is at risk as pilots and cabin crew work longer hours without adequate rest. Former airline captain Mike Simkins shares his experiences with fatigue and the pressures of the industry, highlighting the misconception that safety is the top priority for airlines. Flight attendant Sybil Bryant discusses the struggles of being underpaid and overworked, emphasizing the need for fair compensation for all tasks performed. The episode sheds light on the importance of mental and physical well-being for those in the aviation industry, urging listeners to consider the implications of their travel choices on worker safety.

In this episode, we delve into the harrowing experiences of Amazon warehouse worker Wendy Taylor, who suffered a serious injury while under immense pressure to meet unrealistic productivity quotas. Despite her injuries, Taylor was denied proper medical care and forced to return to work, highlighting the grueling conditions faced by Amazon employees. The episode also discusses the Warehouse Protection Act, aimed at improving workplace safety and workers' rights. As workers advocate for dignity and respect, the episode underscores the human cost of fast shipping and the urgent need for better protections in the workplace.

This episode explores the resurgence of black lung disease among coal miners, particularly due to toxic silica dust exposure. We revisit the Season 3 story of Joe and Elizabeth Opyoke, highlighting the dangers miners face. Cecil Roberts, President of the United Mine Workers of America, discusses the preventability of black lung disease and the need for stricter regulations on silica dust. Recent federal regulations aim to limit silica exposure, but enforcement remains a challenge. The episode emphasizes the importance of prioritizing miners' health over profit and the ongoing fight for their safety in the coal mining industry.

This episode we take listeners back to the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire of 1911. This was one of the deadliest industrial tragedies in U.S. history, claiming 147 lives due to locked exit doors and inadequate safety measures. This tragedy sparked significant reforms, including the establishment of OSHA and mandatory safety regulations. Historian Hasia Diner shares that the fire changed public perception about workers' rights, leading to increased support for unions. Journalist Kim Kelly emphasizes that the fire's legacy continues to inspire workers to organize and advocate for safer working conditions. The event remains a powerful reminder of the importance of worker safety.

In the Season 5 premiere of What Does It Profit, we explore the pressing issue of worker safety at Dollar General. Our journey begins with a bus trip to Nashville, where employees from nine states rally for fair pay and improved safety conditions. The episode highlights alarming safety violations, including blocked fire exits and inadequate staffing, which have led to numerous injuries and fatalities. We hear from workers and experts advocating for change, emphasizing the need for accountability in a company that continues to expand despite these issues. Join us as we uncover the realities of workplace safety in retail.

To our long-time listeners... welcome back. To those who have just found us, we are the podcast that examines the social and moral value of business. In the 5th season of What Does It Profit, we grapple with what it means to feel safe at work. We talk to historians and workforce safety experts, but most importantly we talk to workers themselves. From the surviving family members of those who died in the Triangle Shirtwaist factory fire in NYC to the brave Thomas Cook Airlines pilot who refused to fly fatigued... we learn what it means to be safe at work. Subscribe now so you don't miss what we learn from sex workers, costumed theme park characters, mine workers, retail sales workers and warehouse workers at some of the country's most well-known companies.