Who are we?

The Washington State Women’s Commission, created by the Washington State Legislature and signed into law by Governor Jay Inslee in 2018, is a cabinet agency in the State of Washington’s executive branch. 

It serves as the primary voice in government for Washington women and girls, and aims to improve the well-being of women by advancing policies and initiatives to remove systemic barriers and address critical issues that disproportionately impact women, such as: childcare access and affordability, domestic and gender-based violence, equal pay, and intersectional inequities.

Learn more at wswc.wa.gov.

Why Economic Equity? Why Now?

Washington Gender Pay Gap Ranks 2nd Largest in the Nation

For women in Washington state, earning a wage comparable to their male counterparts could take longer than almost anywhere else in the country.

Pulling data from the American Community Survey, the National Partnership for Women and Families found that women in Washington made $18,400 less in average wages than men in 2022. This amount is among the largest gender-based wage discrepancies in the nation, second only to Utah at $20,649. If this gap were closed, women in our state could pay for 11 months of rent, over a year of childcare, or pay off nearly two years of student loan debt.

For black women, indigenous women, and women of color in Washington, the wage gap is even more dire.

  • Latina women are typically paid $35,402 less than white, non-Hispanic men.

    That’s 22 months of rent, 28 months of premiums for employer-provided health insurance, 2.4 years of childcare, pay off average student loans in 1 year.

  • Black women are typically paid $28,405 less than white, non-Hispanic men.

    That’s 17 months of rent, 22 months of premiums for employer-provided health insurance, 1.9 years of childcare, pay off average student loans in 1.2 years.

  • Native American women are typically paid $31,587 less than white, non-Hispanic men.

    That’s 19 months of rent, 25 months of premiums for employer-provided health insurance, 2.1 years of childcare, pay off average student loans in 1.1 year

  • Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander women are typically paid $21,468 less than white, non-Hispanic men.

    That’s 13 months of rent, 16.5 months of premiums for employer-provided health insurance, 1.5 years of childcare, pay off average student loans in 1.9 years.

Occupational Segregation

A main contributor to pay disparity is that women are more likely than men to work in low-paying jobs that offer fewer benefits. One of the largest identifiable causes of the gender wage gap are differences in the occupations and industries where women and men are most likely to work. This is called occupational segregation.

Here in Washington, the industries that pay the most often have the least number of women employed. Women make up only about 30% of tech workers, for example.

“The top job for women in Washington is registered nurse. The median salary for them is about $77K. Male software engineers earn roughly double that.”

-KUOW