League of Women Voters Tennessee State Conference October 13, 2001 The Status of Women in Tennessee

The Status of Women in Tennessee Based on research conducted in conjunction with the Institute for Women’s Policy Research Presentation by Center for Research on Women University of Memphis Tennessee Economic Council on Women

Local Co-Sponsors §American Association of University Women (Memphis Branch) §Center for Women’s Health Improvement, UT-Memphis §Church Women United §Girls Incorporated §League of Women Voters of Memphis-Shelby County §Memphis Center for Reproductive Health §Memphis Regional Planned Parenthood §Memphis Sexual Assault Resource Center

Local Co-Sponsors (cont.) §National Coalition of 100 Black Women, Inc., Memphis Chapter §National Council of Jewish Women §National Organization for Women (Memphis Chapter) §Network of Memphis §Tennessee Women's Political Caucus §United Methodist Women §Women Business Owners Contract Alliance Network §Women in Business Advisory Council §Women in Leadership Program, The University of Memphis

Local Co-Sponsors (cont.) §Women of Achievement §Women's Foundation for a Greater Memphis §Young Women's Christian Association §For financial support of this event, special thanks to: Mickey Babcock; Center for Research on Women Donors' Fund; Center for Women’s Health Improvement-UT, Memphis; Network of Memphis; Office of the President, The University of Memphis; Public Service Fund, The University of Memphis; and Karen B. Shea.

Women by Race/Ethnicity (As % of Total, 1995)

Key Points §Demographics for African American women in Tennessee demand special consideration §Latina women have been undercounted and their representation in Tennessee continues to grow

“Unusual” Demographics (1990)

Women’s Labor Force Participation, by Race (1997)

Key Points §African American women in Tennessee are more likely to be working than women nation-wide whether they are single, married, or single heads of household §Women in Tennessee with children under one year old are more likely to be working than their national counterparts

Median Annual Earnings of Full-Time, Year-Round Workers (1997)

Women’s Occupational Distribution (1998)

Wages in Tennessee by Gender of Job (1998)

Educational Attainment of Women, Aged 25 and Older (1998)

Women’s Education & Earnings in Tennessee (1979 & 1997)

Women’s Education and the Wage Gap in Tennessee

Key Points §Women’s earnings are influenced by the overall distribution of lower wage jobs in Tennessee §Women are concentrated in the lowest wage jobs §Education is an issue, but gender depresses wages even when education is taken into account

Poverty Rates for Single Women and Men, 1997

Family Poverty Rates, 1997

Wages by Family Type in Tennessee (1997)

Key Points §Mothers with children in poverty raise special concerns about “supported work.” §If unmarried poor mothers marry poor men, they are still likely to be below the “living wage.”

Women-Owned Firms (1992)

Women-Owned Firms, by Industry (1992)

Key Points §Women-owned businesses remain concentrated in low capital and low profit sectors §Growth reflects interest and efforts that can be nurtured and supported

Health Insurance Coverage in Tennessee, by Gender (1997)

Women’s Mortality Rates from Heart Disease ( )

Women’s Mortality Rates from Breast Cancer ( )

Women in Office, Tennessee and United States (2000)

Voter Registration in Tennessee and the United States (1996) §Women tend to register and to vote at rates slightly higher than men. This is true both in Tennessee and the U.S. as a whole. Two-thirds of Tennessee women are registered to vote.