With Women’s Equality Day around the corner on August 26th and the U.S. ranking No. 51 out of 149 countries on the Global Gender Gap Index – falling two spots since the previous year – the personal-finance website WalletHub today released its report on 2019’s Best & Worst States for Women’s Equality as well as accompanying videos.
In order to determine where women receive the most equal treatment in American society, WalletHub compared the 50 states across 17 key metrics. The data set ranges from the gap between female and male executives to the disparity in unemployment rates for women and men.
Best States for Women’s Equality | Worst States for Women’s Equality | |||
1 | Maine | 41 | Kansas | |
2 | Hawaii | 42 | Oklahoma | |
3 | Nevada | 43 | Missouri | |
4 | New York | 44 | Alabama | |
5 | New Mexico | 45 | Virginia | |
6 | West Virginia | 46 | Louisiana | |
7 | Minnesota | 47 | South Carolina | |
8 | Colorado | 48 | Texas | |
9 | Vermont | 49 | Idaho | |
10 | Delaware | 50 | Utah |
Best vs. Worst
In every state, women earn less than men. New Mexico has the lowest gap, with women earning 9.10 percent less, whereas Wyoming has the highest, 28.40 percent.
In nearly every state, women represent the highest share of minimum-wage workers. Arizona, Montana and Illinois have an equal ratio of females to males. Iowa, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Vermont, Wisconsin and Wyoming have the highest minimum-wage workers gap at 50.00 percent.
Alaska has the highest unemployment-rate gap favoring women, with 3.50 percent more unemployed men. Utah has the highest gap favoring men, with 0.80 percent more unemployed women. The unemployment rate is equal for men and women in Iowa, Maryland and New Hampshire.
In nearly every state legislature, male lawmakers outnumber their female counterparts. Nevada has the highest gap favoring women, with 10.00 percent, while Mississippi has the highest gap favoring men, with 84.00 percent more males.
To view the full report and your state’s rank, please visit: https://wallethub.com/edu/best-and-worst-states-for-women-equality/5835/.
Editor’s note: Women’s Equality Day commemorates the anniversary of the adoption of the 19th Amendment, affirming women’s right to vote. You can learn more here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Women%27s_Equality_Day or here: https://www.timeanddate.com/holidays/us/women-equality-day.