The gender pay gap costs Washington women more than $20.3 billion each year, according to a new analysis released Tuesday by the National Partnership for Women & Families.
“The wage gap cannot be explained by women’s choices,” Debra L. Ness, president of the National Partnership said in a statement. “It’s clear that discrimination contributes to it – and equally clear that it’s causing grave harm to women, families and the country.”
The analysis, which was released on Equal Pay Day, looked at U.S. Census data and found if the gender pay gap were closed, Washington women would on average be able to afford nearly 16 more months of child care or over 12 months of rent. That was based off data that Washington women make 77 cents for every dollar men make, which is an annual wage difference of $13,808.
Washington state has the 12th largest gender wage gap in the U.S., according to the analysis. Louisiana and Utah have the largest gap, and New York, California, and Florida have the smallest.
Washington took action last month when Governor Jay Inslee signed a law that aims to begin closing the gender pay gap. The law updates a 75-year-old law to give employees and employers guidelines about what constitutes wage discrimination. It also makes it illegal for employers to retaliate against employees who talk about their salaries with co-workers.
