Women

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Womens Economic Status in the U.S.and in the
Great Lakes Region

• Vicky Lovell, Ph.D., and Erica Williams
• Institute for Womens Policy Research
• Womens Economic Empowerment
• YWCA Great Lakes Alliance Region
• March 15, 2007

www.iwpr.org
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IWPR's Mission

• The Institute for Women's Policy Research
  conducts rigorous research and disseminates its
  findings to address the needs of women, promote
  public dialogue, and strengthen families,
  communities, and societies. IWPR focuses on
  issues of poverty and welfare, employment and
  earnings, work and family issues, health and
  safety, and women's civic and political
  participation.

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IWPRs Status of Women in the States Project

• Started in 1995 in response to devolution of
  public policies from national to state policy
  makers
• Since 1996, reports have measured and tracked
  womens economic well-being
• The most widely cited resource on women in the
  country
• State-level indicators, rankings, and grades
  highlight differences among states
• Advisory groups ensure that measures are relevant
  in each state and that results will be used

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The Status of Women in the States Reports are
Designed to

• Inform citizens about the progress of women in
  their state relative to women in other states, to
  men, and to the nation as a whole.
• Provide baseline measures of womens status in
  each state and DC.
• Track change and call attention to disparities
  around the country.

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Composite Index, Employment and Earnings
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Womens Earnings in the Great Lakes Region, 1995
to 2005
U.S. Average Ohio 19
Wisconsin - 24
Indiana - 29
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Gender Earnings Ratio, 2005
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Occupational Segregation in Top 10 Womens Jobs,
2005
Job Number of Women (thousands) Percent Female Median Weekly Earnings
Secretaries 3,404 97.3 559
Cashiers 2,334 75.9 322
RNs 2,229 92.3 930
Primary teachers 2,151 82.2 813
Retail sales 1,687 51.9 401
Nursing aides 1,686 88.7 385
Retail managers 1,462 41.5 525
Bookkeeping clerks 1,329 91.3 551
Waitpersons 1,383 71.8 332
Receptionists 1,271 92.4 463
Source U.S. Department of Labor, 20 Leading
Occupations of Employed Women Full-time Wage and
Salary Workers 2005 Annual Averages
(http//www.dol.gov/wb/factsheets/20lead2005.htm)
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Selected Indicators by Race and Ethnicity, 2005
Women's Median Annual Earnings for Full-Time Year-Round Work, 2005 Percent of Women Above Poverty, 2005 Percent of Women with Health Insurance, 2005
All Women 32,200 86.4 81.4
White 34,200 90.0 86.1
African American 29,600 75.1 77.3
Asian American 36,500 88.3 79.2
Native American 28,000 74.7 66.8
Hispanic 24,500 77.3 62.5
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Percent of Women Living Above Poverty, 2005
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Percent of Women with Health Insurance, 2005
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Policy and Advocacy Impacts of the SWS Project

• Outreach and Education Initiatives
• Capacity- and Institution-Building
• Political Participation/Legislative Activity
• Research Initiatives
• Grantmaking

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Outreach and Education Initiatives

• The Womens Fund of the Milwaukee Foundation
  created a workshop to teach advocates and others
  how to use data to promote policy changes.
• Wisconsin Women Prosperity has conducted
  workshops on best practices for employers and on
  violence against women and what it means for
  their well-being.
• The SW in IN report was distributed at a
  conference that resulted in preliminary formation
  of a statewide living wage campaign in Indiana.
• The SW in IN report led to outreach to state
  legislators around campaigns for improved health
  care and expanded economic opportunities in
  Indiana.

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Outreach and Education (cont.)

• WI Lt. Governor Barbara Lawton worked with the SW
  in Wisconsin Advisory Committee to hold a womens
  legislative summit entitled Wisconsin Women
  Forward.
• In Michigan, women gathered around 100 people
  including Deans of college campuses, the mayor,
  the president of the Chamber of Commerce, and
  leaders from non-profit organizations to discuss
  what the SW in IN report implied for the state's
  economic development.
• The Greater Milwaukee Foundation created a
  toolkit for agencies serving women and girls.
• Wisconsin Women Prosperity formed Regional
  Solutions Networks across the state and compiled
  and distributed Take Action papers to be used by
  advocates and activists to promote women's
  well-being in their area.

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Capacity- and Institution-Building

• The report led to the establishment of the
  Illinois Commission on the Status of Women.
• The SWS data and findings helped to reestablish
  the Missouri Women's Council, which was
  originally established in 1985.
• The SW in MO report led to the formation of the
  Alliance for the Status of Missouri Women, an
  active coalition of organizations and government
  agencies working toward improving women's health,
  economic, and political status in the state.
• Lt. Governor Lawton convened a task force in 2005
  in response to Wisconsin's ranking of 48th among
  the states for women's mental health, as reported
  by the Institute for Women's Policy Research in
  their Status of Women in Wisconsin report.

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Capacity- and Institution-Building (cont.)

• Women leaders in Wisconsin formed a nonprofit
  organization, Wisconsin WomenProsperity.
• The Illinois report helped to revitalize the
  Chicago Foundation for Women and its funding
  priorities on its 20th anniversary.
• The SW in MN report helped the Womens Fund of
  the Greater Milwaukee gain more visibility,
  expand its outreach, and serve as a primary
  resource for developing programs and prioritizing
  efforts to better respond to the realities of
  Wisconsin's women and families.
• The SWS project inspired the formation of the
  Women's Research Network at Wright State
  University in Ohio.

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Political Participation/ Legislative Activity

• Wisconsin Women Prosperity and its grassroots
  regional networks of women have used the report
  to increase the number of women in political
  office. They recently succeeded in getting the
  first woman elected to the Green Bay City
  Council, two women elected to the Green Bay
  County Board, and a woman elected to the Oshkosh
  City Council.
• The SW in IN report informed legislation passed
  by the House that required the creation of an
  equal pay committee to study the state's wage
  disparities and to report its findings and
  recommendations for corrective action to the
  Labor Commissioner and Governor.
• The SW in MO report aided the Missouri Women's
  Council, a government established institution, in
  outlining legislative priorities for women.

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Political Participation/Legislative Activity
(cont.)

• Advocates pushed for a bill to create an Illinois
  Commission on the Status of Women in 1999.
• The SW in MI report helped the Michigan Womens
  Commission to support the enforcement of equal
  pay for equal work laws and family-friendly
  workplaces in the state and to provide training
  for women to run for office and to support
  programs recruiting young women into the
  political pipeline.
• The SW in MI report influenced the introduction
  of bipartisan legislation to require all health
  insurance companies to cover contraceptives.

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Research Initiatives

• The Status of Michigan Women at the County Level
  was released by the Michigan Women's Commission
  and the James A. Faith Knight Foundation in June
  2005 and based on the IWPR reports.
• The Women's Research Network at Wright State
  University in Ohio created a Regional Database
  Initiative, a comprehensive database of existing
  research and data that serves as a resource for
  scholars, organizations, and individuals
  throughout the region.
• The SWS project inspired the formation of a new
  Institute on Women, Gender, and Public Policy at
  Ohio State University.
• The Women's Research Network also conducted a
  survey that provides a baseline portrait of the
  status of women in the Miami Valley.
• The SWS project and reports inspired the Greater
  Cincinnati Foundation's Women's Fund to publish
  Pulse A Study on the Status of Women and Girls
  in Greater Cincinnati.

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Research Initiatives (cont.)

• The Wisconsin Womens Council published The
  Status of Women in Wisconsin Counties A Research
  Blueprint modeled after IWPR's Community Research
  Tool.
• The La Follette School of Public Affairs and the
  Women's Studies Research Center at the University
  of Wisconsin, Madison joined efforts to create
  the Center for Public Policy and the Status of
  Women, which conducts research and recommends
  policy changes for addressing Wisconsin women's
  status based on the SW in WI report and WWP's
  issue priorities.
• The Wisconsin Women's Council and the Women's
  Fund of Greater Milwaukee produced a report on
  the Status of Women in Milwaukee County, based on
  IWPR's SWS series.
• The Wisconsin Women's Council partnered with a
  state research organization to combine local and
  IWPR research on women's economic well-being.

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Grantmaking

• The Michigan Women's Foundation has used the SW
  in MI and SWS data to guide its grantmaking
  around the economic self-sufficiency and
  leadership development of women and girls.
• The Women's Fund of the Greater Milwaukee uses
  the report to inform strategic planning and grant
  making.
• The SWS reports have informed the funding
  priorities of the Otto Bremer Foundation, a
  regional fund that works in Wisconsin among other
  states. It has, for example, now prioritized
  coalition-building as a major area.

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Conclusion

• Data on the status of women can be an effective
  tool for policy advocacy at the state and local
  level.
• The SWS data have been used as the centerpiece
  of events, advocacy campaigns, and
  coalition-building. They have also been used to
  develop publicity hooks and more specific
  legislative action and to bolster support for
  institutions and organizations committed to
  women's progress.
• IWPR's partnership with state and local
  organizations and advocates is central to the
  ability of data to make a difference.