February 22, 2006
Contact: Curt Stewart 801.526.4315
Salt Lake City - A new report from the Department of Workforce
Services (DWS) shows that more women in Utah work outside the home than women
in other states do. This and other information about women and work in Utah
are explored in the publication, Hard at Work - Women in the Utah Labor Force.
The report looks at the facts of working women’s pay, advancement and
challenges.
Highlights from the report include:
While men outnumber women in Utah’s population, 61 percent of women over
the age of 16 were participants in the labor market. Nationally, only 58 percent
of women are in the labor force.
Almost 60 percent of married Utah women work outside the home.
Generally, the more nontraditional the job, the higher the pay for a woman –
with the exception of nurses and dental hygienists, both high-paying predominantly
female occupations.
Over time, women-headed families are making up a larger share of all families
in poverty, accounting for 17 percent of families in poverty in 2002.
The entire report is on the DWS website, at http://jobs.utah.gov/opencms/wi/pubs/hardatwork.
Hard copies can be ordered by calling 801-526-9785, or emailing wipublications@utah.gov.
Data on this report was tabulated and then analyzed primarily from surveys conducted
by the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
For more information, please contact Lecia Parks Langston at 435-688-3115.
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