The Institute for Women’s Policy Research’s new report shows that women have higher rates of poverty and much lower rates of business ownership than men in all 50 states. This is true although women have made significant progress over the last 25 years in attaining a college education.
The report revealed that this trend is especially pronounced among the youngest workers. Millennial women are considerably more likely than their male counterparts to have a bachelor’s degree or higher (36.3 percent, compared with only 28.3 percent of millennial men), yet millennial women have lower earnings than men in all but one state, and higher rates of poverty than millennial men in every state in the nation.
The institute’s “Status of Women in the States: 2015” series analyzed four indicators to create the Poverty &Opportunity Composite Index: educational attainment, business ownership, poverty, and access to health insurance coverage.
“They ranked and graded every state based on their composite scores in these areas.”
Overall, the status of women with respect to poverty and opportunity has worsened in the majority of states (29) in the last decade. In 21 states and the District of Columbia, women’s status in these areas has improved.
“Despite their significant educational progress, women remain more economically vulnerable than men and this is especially true for Millennials, who represent the future of our labor market and economy,” institute President Heidi Hartmann said in a statement. “The inequality between women’s and men’s wages and their differential poverty rates, at all ages and educational levels, is a significant part of the income inequality story that is not being told.”
Across the United States, 15.5 percent of women live in poverty, compared with 11.9 percent of men.
The report also finds that women in the United States own a much smaller share of businesses than men. The proportion of women-owned businesses in the United States increased marginally from 26.0 percent to 28.8 percent between 1997 and 2007, the most recent year for which federal data is available.
For more information visit, www.statusofwomendata.org.
Apple Pay at Cosmo
Apple Pay is making its Las Vegas Strip debut at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas.
The first hotel-casino to announce the arrival of Apple Pay is The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas. The property will feature the payment technology beginning this summer.
By early June, The Cosmopolitan’s front desk, concierge, VIP services, restaurant collection and lounges, bars and select retailers will offer the new payment methods.
“The arrival of Apple Pay on the Las Vegas Strip is a natural fit, offering increasingly mobile-centric, luxury travelers a streamlined and convenient experience,” Cosmopolitan Chief Marketing Officer Lisa Marchese said in a statement.
The installation of Ingenico Group IPP320 and ISC250 retail PIN pads will make Apple Pay transactions around the resort possible. In addition to Apple Pay, all terminals will accept any and all existing forms of electronic payment, including contactless systems such as Google Wallet.
SBA en Español
The U.S. Small Business Administration has released a Spanish language version of SBA.gov.
The site includes much of the same content of SBA.gov as well as several popular Web-based tools, including the business plan tool and size standards tool.
“Our Spanish language website shows how SBA is making our tools smarter, bolder and more accessible,” U.S. Small Business Administration administrator Maria Contreras-Sweet said in a statement. “In communities all across the country, Spanish-speaking American entrepreneurs are working hard, creating good jobs and building their communities.”
According U.S. Census data, nearly 37 million people in America speak Spanish at home. The Spanish language site includes 2,000 translated Web pages, including content such as blogs and press releases.