The United States has a problem with gender equality. In the World Economic Forum’s list of the most gender-equal countries, the nation doesn't even crack the top 20; in fact, it's No. 23, behind Burundi, Lesotho, Nicaragua and the Philippines.
But some states are better than others.
To quantify the problem state by state, the financial advice and social website WalletHub looked at data from the U.S. Census Bureau, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the National Women's Law Center, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Center for American Women and Politics. The group examined 10 different metrics in each state, including the number of female versus male executives, the disparity in life expectancy, and the imbalance in political representation.
In honor of Women’s Equality Day on Aug. 26 (the national celebration of the 19th Amendment, which guarantees women the right to vote) WalletHub published the results in a study called "2014’s Best and Worst Cities for Women’s Equality."
“By highlighting the most and least gender-egalitarian states,” WalletHub says, “we hope to accomplish three goals: help women find the best career opportunities, empower them to keep fighting for their rights and encourage states to learn from one another.”
Here are the five states with best overall equality for women:
And the five with the worst:
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