Best Of States, Worst of States: Equality, Opportunity Differ
New studies identify the best and worst cities to live and work based on a number of factors.
Where you live and who you are unfortunately makes a big difference on how you live and work in this country.
Take The Lead took a look at several new studies— on racial equality by state, opportunities for LGBTQIA persons by state, remote work access by state, post-COVID-19 jobs by location and women in tech opportunities—to clarify the geographic framing of equity and opportunity in America.
“@Takeleadwomen took a look at several new studies to clarify the geographic framing of #equity and opportunity in America. #LGBTQ #RacialEquality #PostCOVID”
Racial Equity
With the backdrop of millions of non-essential workers in this country working remotely at home, and heightened awareness about racial disparities prompting changes, Wallet Hub released its latest study on state economies and racial inequality.
The report shows that disparity in wealth between white and Black Americans is highest in the District of Columbia and Midwestern states of Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Michigan and Ohio.
“A new report by @Wallethub shows wealth disparity between white and Black Americans is highest in the District of Columbia and Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Michigan and Ohio. #Inequality #WealthGap”
“In order to determine which states have the most racial equality in terms of employment and wealth, WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia across eight key metrics. Our data compares the difference between white and Black Americans in areas such as annual income, unemployment rate and homeownership rate,” the study reports.
The average white family has a net worth of $171,000, compared to just $17,150 for the average Black family. As racial tensions run high in America, it’s an opportune time to take a look at which states have done the most to promote financial equality.
“According to research by @BrookingsInst, the average white family has a net worth of $171,000, compared to just $17,150 for the average Black family. #Inequality #Discrimination”
The states that scored the highest for racial equality include New Mexico, Alaska, Arizona, Hawaii, Texas and Colorado.
Read more in Take The Lead on best places for women to succeed
When it comes to business leadership, the study shows, “only 3.2 percent of executive or senior-level positions belong to Black Americans, even though that demographic makes up 13 percent of the U.S. population. The overall Black unemployment rate is consistently higher than the white unemployment rate, too.”
The states with the lowest labor force participation rate gap are Hawaii, Kentucky, Alaska, Arizona and Texas. That is the opposite of the states with the highest labor force participation rate gap, including Illinois, South Dakota, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and District of Columbia.
LGBTQIA Fairness
As June is Pride Month, 24/7 Wall St. rated states on welcoming LGBTQIA persons, measuring “hate crimes motivated by gender and sexual orientation reported per 100,000 people, laws protecting the LGTBQ community, and the percentage of each state's population who identifies as LGTBQ – to identify the best and worst states for LGBTQ people,” according to USA Today.
“As June is #PrideMonth, @247WallSt. rated states on welcoming LGBTQIA persons; they measured hate crimes, #LGBTQ anti-discrimination laws and states’ LGBTQ population. ”
Read more in Take The Lead on workplace fairness for LGBTQIA persons
“In Texas alone, 19 anti-LGBTQ bills were filed in 2019. In Iowa, transgender health care benefits were removed from the state’s medical plan. Across the country, 102 anti-LGBTQ bills were introduced, and seven became laws.”
Remote Work Hotspots
Another study by Broadband Deals, examined what are the best cities in the world to live in to work remotely.
“The rankings compared cities based on the average internet speed, availability of food delivery companies, the number of remote working jobs available, the cost of a laptop in the city and the cost of living,” Globetrender reports.
It found that Bucharest was the world’s best city for remote working. For cities in the U.S., the next best are Houston, Las Vegas, Atlanta, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Chicago. Nine of the 10 worst cities for remote working were in Europe, with the other noted as Seoul, South Korea.
“A study by @BroadbandUK_ examined which cities in the world are best to live in to work remotely. In the U.S., Houston, Las Vegas, Atlanta, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Chicago were the highest rated. #WorkFromHome”
Post-COVID Opportunities
And if quarantining has you itching to put all your belongings in a truck and move, then consider that Business Insider sought to discover the best U.S. cities to live in post COVID.
“ @Businessinsider determined the cities that would recover fastest from the health #pandemic. In the top 10 were Springfield, Ill.; Jefferson City, Mo.; Fargo, N.D.; Bloomington, Ill.; Champaign, Ill., and Ames, Iowa. #PostCOVID”
Using “nine economic, educational, and demographic metrics from government data sources and academic research,” researchers determined cities that would recover fastest from the health pandemic.
Read more in take The Lead on best cities for women
“These measures are the pre-coronavirus unemployment rate, ability to work from home, population density, housing affordability, monthly household costs, cost of living, weekly two-way work commute, total elementary- and secondary-school spending per student, and share of residents age 25 and over who have at least a bachelor's degree,” according to the report.
The No. 1 city ranked was Springfield, Illinois, where “the pre-coronavirus unemployment rate was 3.5%, equivalent to the national rate, and 42.9% jobs could be done from home, the 16th-highest share among metro areas.”
Also in the top 10 were Springfield, Ill.; Jefferson City, Mo.; Fargo, N.D.; Bloomington, Ill.; Champaign, Ill., and Ames, Iowa.
The bottom five out of 30 best cities were Green Bay, Wis.; State College, Penn; Omaha Neb.; Peoria, Ill.; Grand Island, Neb. and Danville, Ill.
Women in Tech
SmartAsset gathered data to see which U.S. cities are more progressive about “adding women to their tech workforce,” according to CNBC.
“@Smartasset gathered data to see which U.S. cities are more progressive about “adding women to their tech workforce,” according to @CNBC. Baltimore, Md. came in first with a #genderpaygap of 94%. #WomenInTech”
Read more in take The Lead on gender parity cities
“Taking the top spot on this year’s list in Baltimore, Maryland, which came in second place last year. In Baltimore, women hold 32.6% of tech roles and have average earnings that are about 94% of what men make. Additionally, tech employment in Baltimore has grown 26% from 2015 through 2018, and women have a median annual income of about $60,000 after subtracting housings costs in the city,” according to CNBC.
In the second top spot is Washington,D.C., with a gender pay gap of 93% (women make 93 percent of what men do); income of $59,981 after housing, and 39 % of tech jobs filled by women. Arlington and Chesapeake, Va., and Albuquerque, N.M are also in the top five cities for women in tech.
“SmartAsset found that major tech hubs like New York City and San Francisco did not make the top 10 cut for best cities for women in tech. In fact, these cities ranked 27 and 33, respectively, when looking at data around women in the technology industry,” CNBC reports.
Additional research also shows a poor record for supporting women in tech at this time, according to Forbes:
“Research shows that there is a poor record for supporting #womenintech at this time, according to @Forbes. #COVID19”
"A recent report by Trust Radius revealed that women in tech are more likely to be laid-off or furloughed than men, and nearly 1.5x as likely to feel a greater childcare burden due to COVID-19.”
While there may not be a utopia for equality and fairness across race, identity, gender and opportunity, checking to see what cities ranked best—and worst—on all these scales may influence your where and your why in terms of cities and states to live and work.
“While there may not be a utopia for #equality and #fairness, checking to see what cities ranked best—and worst—may influence your where and your why in terms of cities and states to live and work. ”
