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Study Gives Indiana Poor Grade For Gender Wage Gap

Keith Cooper
/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/cooperweb/8363160192

A new study ranks Indiana near the bottom  when it comes to gender pay equality. 

An American Association of University Women study finds Indiana women on average earn only about three-quarters of what their male counterparts do.

The study cites weak state laws as part of the reason Indiana ranks 40th out of the 50 states.

Indiana Institute for Working Families policy analyst Erin Macey says a Cornell University study showed women are often penalized just for being mothers.

“Participants are given sort of identical job candidates and the only thing that differs is their parental status. And they found that by and large the participants rated the mothers lower in terms of what kind of salary they would give and whether or not they seemed competent," Macey says.

The study finds the opposite is true for men. They are more likely to be hired and paid more if they have children.

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