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WASHINGTON (AP) -- A new federal report shows Utah has one of the largest wage gaps between women and men in the nation.
A U-S Bureau of Labor Statistics report says Utah ranked 50th out of the 50 states and the District of Columbia in 2004. Wyoming took last place. That means on average women working full time in Utah last year made only 69 percent of what men made.
Local economists say the gap is based on the profile of Utah workers, where 30 percent of men earn bachelor's degrees, but only 22 percent of women graduate from college.
Economists say Utah's high birth rate also contributes to the gap. Parenthood takes women out of the labor force at the time most workers are gaining salary.
The U-S Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has several wage discrimination lawsuits pending against Utah companies in federal court.
(Copyright 2005 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
