Work and Family
The equal participation of women in politics and government is integral to building strong communities and a vibrant democracy in which women and men can thrive. By voting, running for office, and engaging in civil society as leaders and activists, women shape laws, policies, and decision-making in ways that reflect their interests and needs, as well as those of their families and communities.
Today, women constitute a powerful force in the electorate and inform policymaking at all levels of government. Yet, women continue to be underrepresented in governments across the nation and face barriers that often make it difficult for them to exercise political power and assume leadership positions in the public sphere. This chapter presents data on several aspects of women’s involvement in the political process in the United States: voter registration and turnout, female state and federal elected and appointed representation, and state-based institutional resources for women. It examines how women fare on these indicators of women’s status, the progress women have made and where it has stalled, and how racial and ethnic disparities compound gender disparities in specific forms of political participation.
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Political Participation Rank and Score by State
Latinas Won’t Reach Pay Equity with White Men Until 2198
The recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic’s economic crisis resulted in a tight labor market in which many workers gained through switching jobs and finding higher earnings. However, Latina women workers were hit hardest and are still facing lower labor force participation than before the [...]
Gender and Racial Wage Gaps Worsened in 2023 and Pay Equity Still Decades Away
In 2023, women working full-time year-round made 82.7 cents per dollar earned by men (a wage gap of 17.3 percent), a significant worsening of the earnings ratio compared to 84.0 cents per dollar in 2022 (a wage gap of 16.0 percent). Read more from [...]
Forecasting Pay Equity: Women Are Expected to Wait Over 50 Years to Reach Parity with Men
If progress continues at the same rate as it has since 2000, it will take more than four decades—until 2066— for women working full-time year-round to reach pay equity with men and even longer—until 2088—to reach pay equity between all working women and men. [...]
Women Servers Earn Significantly Less than Their Male Counterparts
In 2023, 2.2 million people worked as servers in the United States, of which almost two-thirds were women. Additionally, most workers earning a tipped minimum wage were employed in the restaurant industry. This quick figure explores disparities among servers across gender, race, and ethnicity. [...]
State by State, Mothers Are Paid Much Less than Fathers
Mothers’ earnings are crucial for their own and their families’ economic security. Mothers are more likely than ever to be in the labor market: almost three-quarters (74.0 percent) of mothers of children under 18 were employed or looking for work in 2023, a higher [...]
Reproductive Health Care: Concerns and Priorities
A new national poll from IWPR higlights the critical importance of reproductive health and rights to American families. The poll, released two years after the landmark Dobbs decision, underscores the level of national support policymakers have to advance abortion access nationwide amid increasing state-level [...]