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Best and Worst States for Women’s Equality

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Many things go into measuring women’s equality at work, including the all-important gender pay gap, and the percentage of women filling executive positions in different companies and geographic areas. The following data will show you how your state ranks in issues regarding women’s equality in the workplace.

(Photo Credit: pfarrell95/Flickr)

The United States of America is ranked no. 23 on the World Economic Forum’s Gender Gap Report. We may be the world’s greatest economic power, and we didn’t even make the top 20 countries who treat women and men with equality.

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Gender Pay Gap

The National Women’s Law Center reports that women make up two-thirds of all minimum wage workers. New Hampshire, West Virginia, Arkansas, and Nebraska have the highest percentages; at least 7 out of 10 minimum wage workers in those states are women.

There is also the issue of a gender pay gap when men and women are doing the same work. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, women averaged about $0.80 to the man’s dollar in 2012, nationwide.

Executive Positions

The Center for American Progress states that women in the United States earn about 60 percent of bachelor’s degrees, and about 60 percent of master’s degrees. And while women hold 52 percent of professional positions, they are only 14.6 percent of executive officers, 8.1 percent of top earners, and 4.6 percent of Fortune 500 CEOs.

WalletHub‘s research indicates that the best states for women who want to work in executive positions are Alabama, Maine, Rhode Island, Montana, and Alaska. And the five states that have the smallest pay gap between men and women are Arizona, California, Nebraska, Maryland, and Florida.

Tell Us What You Think

How does your state rank for women’s equality? We want to hear from you! Leave a comment or join the discussion on Twitter.


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Patricia
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Patricia

Lol, many of us have received concussions from hitting our heads on,the Executive level glass ceiling. The issues of parity for women in all areas, economic parity self sufficency, health care, legal rights, etc are deep rooted, long standing, and not likely to change rapidly in this culture which prizes child bearing ability, and rewards those who are able to produce multiple off spring with multiple subsidies and expects those of us who dont reproduce for whatever reason, to support,… Read more »

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