WS Chronicle

The N.C. Department of Administration’s Council for Women has released “Status of Women in North Carolina,” a report that tracks the progress and disparity in opportunities and outcomes for North Carolina women since 1996.

The report, released last week at the NC Women’s Roundtable in Greensboro, reveals that women made significant progress over the past 15 years by increasing representation in the state’s elective executive positions, holding a higher proportion of state legislative seats, and narrowing the gender wage gap. However, the report shows that women continue to be underrepresented in the North Carolina General Assembly relative to their share of the population, and that women still earn less than their male counterparts, only 83 cents on the dollar when compared to men.

“This report shows that North Carolina’s women are becoming better educated, more prosperous and more politically influential than ever before,” said Beth Briggs, director of the N.C. Council for Women. “But it is clear that an equality gap still exists between where women are and where women should be in relation to men.”

The report was prepared by the Institute for Women’s Policy Research with funding from a public-private partnership which included the NC Council for Women, the Wells Fargo Foundation, Women for Women with the Community Foundation of Western NC, Women to Women with the Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro, and the Women’s Giving Circle of Cumberland County.

The March 11 NC Women’s Roundtable featured speakers such as Dr. Jo Allen, president of Meredith College; Susan Brown, market president for Wells Fargo in High Point; and Ariane Hegewisch, study director for the Institute of Women’s Policy Research.

The release of the report and the roundtable event were planned to coincide with Governor McCrory’s proclamation of March as Women’s History Month.

See a full text of the report at www.councilforwomen.nc.gov.