This October, California passed a pay equity law — one of the first of its kind — that expands the grounds on which women can challenge gender discrimination in the workplace. Similar legislation at the national level has been unsuccessful. Despite modest gains towards pay equality in recent years, women are still paid less than 80 cents for every dollar a man earns. In some states, the gaps are far worse.

24/7 Wall St. reviewed a range of economic, leadership, and health factors to identify the 10 worst states for women. Utah trails the nation as the state with the worst gender gaps, while Oregon has the smallest gender gaps overall.

Nationwide, a typical female earns $38,941 annually, nearly $10,000 less than the median annual salary of a typical male of $48,745. In no state do women have higher incomes than men. Heidi Hartmann, president of the Institute for Women’s Policy Research, noted that even millennial women, who tend to be more educated than their male peers, are paid less on average than millennial men.

Click here to see the 10 worst states for women. 

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According to Hartmann, job discrimination is one of the primary drivers of gender inequality, and this partly explains the differences between states. Women are far more likely to work in service oriented, health, financial, or education-related fields than in many other industries. In states where these fields dominate, “women will do better than they do in states that might be heavily dominated by mining or manufacturing or other forms of resource extraction like agriculture and forestry,” Hartmann said.

A number of the 10 worst states for women have higher-than-average shares of workers employed in traditionally-male dominated industries. In Wyoming, North Dakota, and South Dakota, for example, construction and mining employ larger shares of the states’ employed populations than across the nation. Not only do men in these states dominate these industries and receive higher pay relative to women, but also they are paid more relative to men working in these industries nationwide.

A state may have relatively little control over the industry composition of its economy as this largely depends on the presence or absence of natural resources or other unique geographical features. However, a great deal of policy solutions are available to these states. Hartmann gave the example of investing in higher education, which has historically helped level the playing field for men and women.

Economic circumstances contribute to gender inequality. Women with bachelor’s degrees are twice as likely than less-educated new mothers to take paid family leave of some kind. On average, about half of women with no more than a high school diploma do not remain employed after having a child.

Part of the explanation for the gender pay gap may revolve around child rearing. Because women take more time off work for child care than men, they are also more likely to work fewer hours over the course of their careers than men. Many recognize that this particular explanation suggests gender disparities are due to choice alone, rather than discrimination. However, the lack of federal and state support for child care, which leads to women taking time off work or even quitting their jobs, is itself a feature of gender inequality.

Further, men have less access to paid parental leave than women, and this inequity is not favorable for women. According to a recent study released by the Institute for Women’s Policy Research, “Men may be subtly or not-so-subtly discouraged from taking time off to care for a new child, which can contribute to reproducing traditional conceptions of gender roles in society.”

The gender composition of a group of representatives ought to reflect the demographics of the constituency. As Hartmann noted, female members of both the Democratic and Republican parties are more likely to introduce legislation on behalf of women, and the absence of gender balance in the U.S. Congress may account for the lack of policies that might address gender disparities.

The percentage of seats occupied by women in all but three of the 10 state legislatures does not exceed the national share of 24.4% — itself a poor reflection of the U.S. constituency.

These are the worst states for women.

10. Alabama
> Female earnings as pct. of male: 72.6% (6th lowest)
> Female median earnings: $32,136 (8th lowest)
> Male median earnings: $44,245 (15th lowest)
> Pct. of management jobs held by women: 39.7% (24th lowest)

While populations with higher educational attainment generally earn more than population segments with less education, education levels and income among men and women in Alabama are a stark exception. About 23.8% of adult women in the state have at least a bachelor’s degree, in line with the 23.1% of adult men with similar educational attainment. Despite the similar education attainment rates, the typical female worker in Alabama earns $32,136 annually, $12,109 less than the typical male worker.

Not only do women have less power than men financially, they also wield less political power. While women are underrepresented in political office nationwide, making up 24.4% of any given state legislature on average, the problem is even worse in Alabama. Only 14.3% of Alabama legislators are women, the fifth smallest share in the country.

9. Montana
> Female earnings as pct. of male: 74.3% (9th lowest)
> Female median earnings: $31,696 (5th lowest)
> Male median earnings: $42,679 (12th lowest)
> Pct. of management jobs held by women: 36.5% (7th lowest)

Women are much less likely to hold positions of power in Montana than they do in most other states. Women hold only 36.5% of management positions in the state, significantly less than the national share of nearly 40%. Additionally, Montana is one of 13 states with no female congressional representatives.

While women earn only about 80% as much as men nationally, the discrepancy is much worse in Montana. The median annual income of women in the state is only $31,696, less than three-quarters of the typical male’s salary of $42,679. Since Montana is one of 10 states that does not fund pre-K programs, more women in the state may be forced to take time off work for child rearing. The lack of state investment in pre-K programs may partially account for the income discrepancy in Montana.

8. Indiana
> Female earnings as pct. of male: 75.3% (11th lowest)
> Female median earnings: $34,846 (16th lowest)
> Male median earnings: $46,273 (22nd lowest)
> Pct. of management jobs held by women: 39.8% (23rd highest)

Like women nationwide, female Indiana residents are slightly more likely than men to have a college degree. Yet, median earnings for women in the state is equal to just 75.3% of the typical male earnings, the 11th worst pay gap nationwide.

Part of the explanation may also be that, due to the much higher likelihood that women will take time off work for child care, women tend to work fewer hours over the course of their careers than men. As Hartmann explained, however, the lack of public support for child care promotes this disparity and is itself a feature of the gender gap. As is the case in nearly all of the worst states for women, Indiana does not allocate any money to state-run preschool, in contrast with the $4,125 per child expenditure nationwide.

7. Kansas
> Female earnings as pct. of male: 77.0% (14th lowest)
> Female median earnings: $36,162 (24th lowest)
> Male median earnings: $46,951 (25th lowest)
> Pct. of management jobs held by women: 35.8% (6th lowest)

Only 35.8% of women in Kansas are employed in management positions, significantly less than the national share of nearly 40%. For women managing companies and enterprises in professional, scientific, and administrative industries, incomes are much lower in Kansas than they are for men. While the typical male managing a company in the sector earns $71,167 annually, median annual income for a female in a similar position is $49,875, roughly $21,300 less.

Although women in Kansas are not as financially well-off as women across the country, they have had a level of political power uncommon among the worst states for women. While just over half of all states have had, or currently have, a female governor, Kansas has had two. Only five other states have had more than one female occupying the state’s highest office.

6. South Dakota
> Female earnings as pct. of male: 76.2% (13th lowest)
> Female median earnings: $32,048 (7th lowest)
> Male median earnings: $42,034 (8th lowest)
> Pct. of management jobs held by women: 31.8% (2nd lowest)

Both men and women earn less in South Dakota than men and women nationwide. However, men earn a median annual wage of $42,034, nearly $10,000 more than the median income for women of $32,048. Fewer women than men hold the typically higher-paying management positions, which could partly account for the pay disparities. Women hold less than 32% of management positions in South Dakota, the second lowest share after only North Dakota. Similarly, women occupy just 21% of South Dakota’s legislature seats, lower than the national share of 24.4%. Meanwhile, one-third of the state’s congressional delegations are women. While this share is far from perfect equality in representation, it is tied for the sixth highest proportion of all states.

5. Mississippi
> Female earnings as pct. of male: 77.0% (15th lowest)
> Female median earnings: $31,465 (3rd lowest)
> Male median earnings: $40,850 (2nd lowest)
> Pct. of management jobs held by women: 39.9% (22nd highest)

Mississippi is the only state on this list where the income gap between men and women does not exceed the national gap of $9,804. The relatively small gap, however, is likely due to the especially low income levels among residents overall. A typical Mississippi household earns less than the typical household in any other state, and the state’s poverty rate of 21.5% is the highest nationwide. According to Hartmann, poor economic circumstances disproportionately affect women, and women are more likely to live in poverty in the first place. Even though women in Mississippi tend to be more educated than men, 23.5% of women in the state live in poverty, higher than the men’s poverty rate and the highest nationwide. The maternal mortality rate in Mississippi of 19 deaths annually per 100,000 live births is the fourth highest nationwide. Both the female and male life expectancies, at 78 and 72 years respectively, are also the lowest in the country.

4. North Dakota
> Female earnings as pct. of male: 71.3% (5th lowest)
> Female median earnings: $36,087 (22nd lowest)
> Male median earnings: $50,624 (17th highest)
> Pct. of management jobs held by women: 31.2% (the lowest)

Job discrimination is among the biggest drivers of the gender pay gap. The different likelihoods of men and women working in a particular industry is especially relevant in the case of North Dakota. A mining boom has added thousands of jobs in the state over the past five years, but men have filled the vast majority of these jobs. Women hold just 13.1% of mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction jobs, versus the national share of 14.1%. Women in these jobs also earn a fraction of what men in similar positions earn — women earn a median of $39,202, versus $85,159 for the typical man working in the industry. The degree to which female state residents are represented by female politicians also contributes to the gender gap. While a third of North Dakota’s congressional delegation are women — tied for the sixth highest share — fewer than one in five state representatives are women, one of the lower proportions nationwide.

3. Idaho
> Female earnings as pct. of male: 72.8% (7th lowest)
> Female median earnings: $31,019 (the lowest)
> Male median earnings: $42,624 (11th lowest)
> Pct. of management jobs held by women: 37.1% (9th lowest)

Women in leadership roles, Hartmann noted, are more likely to have women’s best interests in mind — be it passing legislation on behalf of women, or providing equal pay to similar employees. While women hold 27.6% of Idaho state legislature seats — higher than the nationwide proportion — there are no female congress members from Idaho, one of 13 states where this is the case. Similarly, women hold 37.1% of management positions in the state, lower than the national share of nearly 40%. In addition to leadership disparities, earning a living in Idaho is very different for men and women. A typical woman in Idaho earns $31,019 annually, the lowest annual wage among females nationwide, and $11,605 lower than the typical Idaho male earnings.

2. Wyoming
> Female earnings as pct. of male: 68.7% (3rd lowest)
> Female median earnings: $35,652 (20th lowest)
> Male median earnings: $51,926 (9th highest)
> Pct. of management jobs held by women: 37.6% (10th lowest)

Known as the Equality State for being the first state to grant women the right to vote, today, Wyoming is one of the worst states for women. The difference in median annual income between men and women in Wyoming is $16,274, the third largest income gap in the country. Moreover, women earn less in their jobs than men despite having a higher educational attainment rate. While 25.8% of men in Wyoming have at least a bachelor’s degree, 27.3% of women have similar education.

Women are also greatly under represented in local political offices. Women hold just 13.3% of the Wyoming state legislature seats — significantly less than the average of 24.4% representation across all states, and the smallest share after only Louisiana.

1. Utah
> Female earnings as pct. of male: 67.4% (2nd lowest)
> Female median earnings: $34,351 (14th lowest)
> Male median earnings: $50,937 (14th highest)
> Pct. of management jobs held by women: 32.7% (3rd lowest)

Utah is the worst state in the nation for women. While men in Utah tend to earn more than men nationwide, women in the state earn less than women nationwide. The difference of $16,586 between male and female median earnings in the state is the second largest in the country. The near nation-leading pay gap in Utah may be partly due to job discrimination. Women hold less than one in three management jobs in the state compared to the national share of nearly 40%. And of the 104 seats in the legislature, female politicians occupy just 16. While the state is not especially favorable for female residents, its economy is quite strong. The state’s unemployment rate of 3.9% — 3.7% among women and 4.0% among men — is the fourth lowest in the nation.

Methodology:

To determine the worst states for women, 24/7 Wall St. developed a methodology based on the Center for American Progress’ 2013 report, “The State of Women in America.” In its second year, our report utilized the same methodology as last year, making state rankings, and state improvements or declines relative to the 2014 report, directly comparable.

We divided a range of variables into three major categories: economy, leadership, and health. Unless otherwise noted, all data are for 2014. Data in the economy category came from the U.S. Census Bureau and included male and female median earnings for full-time work as well as high school and bachelor’s educational attainment rates. The percent of children enrolled in state pre-kindergarten and state spending per child enrolled in pre-kindergarten came from the National Institute for Early Education Research.

The leadership category included data on the percent of women in management occupations from the Census. It also included the share of state and federal legislators who are women from the National Conference of State Legislatures and the U.S. House of Representatives Archives, respectively. From the National Governors Association, we also looked at states that currently have female governors. Data on political representation are current as of this writing.

The health section incorporated Census data on the percent of women who were uninsured. Female life expectancy came from the Kaiser Family Foundation. Additionally, we looked at infant mortality rates from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, as well as maternal mortality rates from the National Women’s Law Center. State policies relating to maternity leave, sick days, and time off came from the National Partnership for Women and Families. Data on a state’s decision to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act came from the Department of Health and Human Services.

State rankings on each of these measures were averaged to determine a score for each category. Possible scores ranged from 1 (best) to 50 (worst). The three category scores were averaged to create an indexed value that furnished our final ranking.

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