THE TENNESSEE
REPORT CARD:
INDICATORS OF
SOCIAL AND
ECONOMIC WELL-
BEING FOR WOMEN
www.iwpr.org | www.statusofwomendata.org |@IWPResearch
ABOUT THE INSTITUTE FOR WOMEN’S POLICY
RESEARCH (IWPR)
The Institute for Women’s Policy Research conducts and
communicates research to inspire public dialogue, shape
policy, and improve the lives and opportunities of
women of diverse backgrounds, circumstances, and
experiences.
Status of
Women
STATUS OF WOMEN IN THE STATES TOPICS
Political
Participation
Employment & Earnings
Poverty &
Opportunity
Work & Family
Violence &
SafetyReproductive
Rights
Health & Well-Being
TENNESSEE’S REPORT CARD
Improved
Since
Subject Grade Rank 2015?
Political Participation D- 38 N/A
Employment & Earnings D+ 38 No
Work & Family D 41 N/A
Poverty & Opportunity D 40 Yes
Reproductive Rights D- 47 N/A
Health & Well-Being D- 45 N/A
MORE TENNESSEE WOMEN REGISTER AND VOTE
THAN MEN, EVEN DURING MIDTERMS
More women registered to vote than men
(63% of women, 59% of men)
More women voted than men
(49% of women, 47% of men)
Note: Includes those aged 18 and older.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Voting and Registration in the Election of November 2018.
WOMEN ARE VASTLY UNDERREPRESENTED IN
POLITICAL OFFICE
Tennessee 2018:
0% of US Senators
22% of US Representatives
16% of State Legislators
Source: Center on American Women and Politics.
Tennessee 2019:
50% of US Senators
0% of US Representatives
15% of State Legislators
TENNESSEE WOMEN, ESPECIALLY MOTHERS,
WORK
56%
66%
Women in the labor force
Moms with kids under 5 yrs old
in the labor force
26% Women working part-time
Source: IWPR analysis of American Community Survey microdata.
WOMEN EARN LESS THAN COMPARABLY
EDUCATED MEN
$36,0
00
$22,0
00
$28,0
00
$34,1
00
$48,0
00
$45,0
00
$29,0
00
$36,0
00
$46,0
00
$70,0
00
Total Less than High
School
High school Some college
or AA degree
Bachelor's or
higher
Earnings by Education Level, Tennessee
Women Men
Source: IWPR analysis of American Community Survey microdata.
WOMEN ARE CONCENTRATED IN LOWER-WAGE
JOBS
TN women’s median annual earnings:
$21,000
TN women’s median annual earnings:
$50,000
55%
45%
Service Occupations
Women Men
45%
55%
Management, Business,
and Financial Occupations
Women Men
Source: IWPR analysis of American Community Survey microdata.
TENNESSEE RANKS IN THE BOTTOM THIRD FOR
WOMEN’S EARNINGS
Median Annual
Earnings
$35,000
Source: IWPR analysis of American Community Survey microdata.
WOMEN OF COLOR EARN FAR LESS
Hispanic women in Tennessee earn
$21,000 less per year than White men.
Black women in Tennessee earn
$15,000 less per year than White men.
Source: IWPR analysis of American Community Survey microdata.
WOMEN HAVE A LONG WAIT FOR PAY EQUITY
The wage gap in Tennessee is
81%.
At the current rate of progress,
women in Tennessee will not earn
the same pay as men until
2054.
Note: Linear projection based on the rate of progress in closing the gender wage gap (the ratio of women's to
men's earnings among full-time, year-round workers aged 16 and older) since 1959.
Source: IWPR calculations based on the 1960 to 2000 Decennial Census (for the calendar years 1959, 1969,
1979, 1989, and 1999) and the 2001-2015 American Community Surveys.
TO PUT THE WAGE GAP INTO PERSPECTIVE
Source: IWPR analysis of American Community Survey microdata. The 2015-16 average undergraduate tuition and
required fees for in-state, full-time students in degree-granting public two-year institutions in Tennessee is $3,940.
CLOSING THE GENDER WAGE GAP WOULD
CUT POVERTY DRAMATICALLY
Source: IWPR calculations based on the Current Population Survey Annual Social and Economic
supplements, 2014-2016, for calendar years 2013-2015.
8.1
%
34.8
%
4.0
%
18.2
%
All Working Women
(-50.6%)
Working Single Mothers
(-47.7%)
Poverty Rates With and Without Equal Pay
Current
If working women earned the same as
comparable men
TENNESSEE WOMEN’S POVERTY RATES ARE
HIGHER THAN MEN’S
1 in 4 Black women
live in poverty.
Hispanic women
are twice as likely
to be in poverty as
White women.
Source: IWPR analysis of American Community Survey microdata.
ECONOMIC SECURITY GOES POVERTY FOR
TENNESSEE FAMILIES
68%
27%
49%
61%
67% 66%
85%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
All Single Womenwith Children
Single Men withChildren
Single Womenwithout Children
Single Menwithout Children
Married Coupleswith Children
Married Coupleswithout Children
Notes: Children are under the age of 19 and the number of children is capped at 6 to make it comparable to the BEST indices. Married couples include
cohabiting partners.
Source: IWPR analysis of five years (2012–2016) of data from American Community Survey (Integrated Public Use Microdata Series, Version 7.0) and the Basic
Economic Security Tables Index.
Percent of Households with Economic Security by Household Type, 2016
EQUAL PAY IS ESPECIALLY IMPORTANT TO BLACK
AND HISPANIC WOMEN IN TENNESSEE
69%74%
54%
46%
73%
60%
73%77%
65%
42%
74%69%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
All White Black Hispanic Asian/PacificIslander
OtherRace/Ethnicity
Women Men
Notes: Includes working adults aged 19–64. Racial groups are non-Hispanic.
Sources: IWPR analysis of five years (2012–2016) of data from American Community Survey (Integrated Public Use Microdata Series, Version 7.0) and the
Basic Economic Security Tables Index.
Percent of Working Adults Living with Economic Security by Gender and
Race/Ethnicity, 2016
TENNESSEE FAMILIES INCREASINGLY RELY ON
WOMEN’S EARNINGS
About 1/2 of White
and Hispanic mother
are breadwinners
More than 4 out of 5
Black mothers are
breadwinners
Black breadwinner
mothers are much
more likely to be
single than married
21.4% 27.4%
63.7%
29.2%
17.8%
19.1%
49.4% 54.8%
17.2%
White MotherHouseholds(n=450,592)
Hispanic MotherHouseholds(n=38,198)
Black MotherHouseholds(n=108,609)
Percent of Households with a Single Mother Breadwinner
Percent of Households with a Married Mother Breadwinner
Percent of Households without a Breadwinner Mother
Notes: A breadwinner mother is defined as a single mother who heads a household (irrespective of earnings) or a married mother who earns at least 40
percent of the couple's joint earnings; single mothers who live in someone else's household (such as with their parents) are not included in breadwinners.
Racial categories are non-Hispanic. Data, calculated using three-year averages (2012-2014), include households with a mother and children under age 18.
Source: IWPR analysis of American Community Survey microdata.
WOMEN ARE THE MAJORITY OF FAMILY CAREGIVERS
One in three workers has kids under 18.
A third of families with kids are headed by a single parent.
One in seven women under 65 lives with an adult with a disability.
10,000 baby boomers a day will turn 65 until 2030.1
The number of men and women age 50 plus who provide care for someone age 65 plus tripled in the last 15 years.2
Sources:
Pew Research Center. 2010. Baby Boomers Retire.
MetLife, 2011. “The MetLife Study of Caregiving Costs to Working Caregivers: Double Jeopardy for Baby Boomers Caring for
Their Parents.”
TENNESSEE LACKS WORK-FAMILY POLICIES
Paid leave legislation including:
Temporary Disability Insurance for All Workers
Statewide Paid Family Care Leave
Paid Sick Days
Sources:
National Partnership for Women and Families. 2016. Expecting Better: A State-by-State Analysis of Laws That Help New Parents.
TRENDS IN TENNESSEE WOMEN’S HEALTH &
WELL-BEING ARE MIXED
Where women’s health improved:
Heart disease deathsLung cancer deathsBreast cancer deathsAIDS incidence for women
Where women’s health worsened:
DiabetesMental health—MUCH worse!SuicideActivity limitations due to health
HEALTH OUTCOMES FOR BLACK WOMEN ARE
WORSE ACROSS A RANGE OF MEASURES
Source: IWPR compilation of data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
22.0
2.3
6.9
20.7
0.6
5.7
29.6
10.111.4
15.5
0.9
5.2
14.6
1.9
6.6
Breast Cancer Mortality
Rate, 2014-2016
(per 100,000)
Diagnoses of AIDS, 2016
(per 100,000)
Infant Mortality Rate,
2013-2015 (per 1,000)
All Women White Black Hispanic Asian/Pacific Islander
WHAT CAN BE DONE –
POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS
Topic Recommendation
Political
Participation
1. Strengthen the pipeline for women in elected office.
2. Remove restrictive voter identification laws.
Employment &
Earnings
1. Expose girls to “non-traditional” occupations.
2. Raise the minimum wage.
3. Ban employer’s from requiring salary history.
Work & Family1. Supplement child care subsidies for women in training or education.
2. Pass paid leave legislation.
Poverty &
Opportunity
1. Invest in scholarships and grants for women of color.
2. Defend the social safety net.
3. Invest in supports that can help single mothers complete college
Health &
Well-Being
1. Expand access to health services to address disparities,
2. Ensure that all women have access to prenatal and infant care.
INSTITUTE FOR WOMEN’S POLICY RESEARCH
www.iwpr.org | www.statusofwomendata.org |@IWPResearch
ELYSE SHAW
STUDY DIRECTOR