Pennsylvania 4th Worst State for Women's Equality, Study Finds

Just as Hillary Clinton opens another round of campaign offices in Pennsylvania, a new study shows that the Keystone State might not be the place to be for women.

Personal finance website WalletHub places Pennsylvania as 47th in the nation for women's equality, based on a wide variety of factors analyzed.

The study compared all 50 states against 15 different metrics, focusing on things like wages, hours, jobs, education, political representation, and other factors. Here's how Pennsylvania women stacked up against the rest of the nation (with 1st being the "most equal" and 25th being "average").

• 35th – Earnings Disparity
• 42nd – Executive Positions Disparity
• 37th – Work Hours Disparity
• 43rd – Educational Attainment Disparity (Among Bachelor’s Degree Holders)
• 48th – Minimum-Wage Workers Disparity
• 49th – Entrepreneurship Rate Disparity
• 40th – Political Representation Disparity

Similarly, the United States has fallen eight places in the Global Gender Gap position since 2014, dropping from 20th to 28th, WalletHub said.

"Equal pay for equal work, a livable minimum wage, and a solid, no-holes safety net to make sure that everyone is fed, housed and educated is the precondition for addressing gender inequality in the U.S.," Kathy Ferguson, Chair of the Department of Political Science, and Professor in the Department of Women's Studies at University of Hawaii College of Social Sciences, told WalletHub.

The leaders in women's equality were both outside of the lower 48, according to the study. Hawaii (1) and Alaska (2) led the list as the most equal states. Nearby, New Jersey placed even lower than Pennsylvania, a spot below, at 48th.

The study found that in all states, men make more than women, men are given longer hours than women, male lawmakers outnumber female lawmakers in every state legislature, and women have higher rates of unemployment than men.

World Women’s Equality Day is on August 26.

»Image from Shutterstock