Equality State

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By Ellen Fike, Cowboy State Daily

In an ironic twist, the Equality State is considered one of the worst states in the country when it comes to women’s equality.

According to a recent study by personal finance website WalletHub, women have been laid off at a greater rate than men and are being re-employed more slowly. The share of the workforce that is female is at its lowest point since 2008.

WalletHub compared the 50 states across 17 indicators of gender equality, ranging from the gap between female and male executives to the disparity in unemployment rates for women and men.

Wyoming ranked 48th in the nation, just beating out Idaho and Utah, respectively. The state had the largest income gap between men and women, but the smallest gap between men and women in executive positions.

There was a large gap between work hours between men and women, but men were considered the disadvantaged.

“The solution is to revisit the distinction between the private and public domains and rethink the line between individual and social responsibilities,” Babson College professor Mary Godwin told WalletHub. “When health, education, and child care are considered public goods provided by and assessable to all citizens rather than private responsibilities, then women’s access to the public realm is closer to that of their male counterparts.”

In 2020, the United States failed to place in the top 10 or top 50 of the World Economic Forum’s ranking of 153 countries based on gender equality. The U.S. dropped to 53, down from its previous rank of 51.

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