Report Finds Gender Gap Contributes To Number Of Women In Poverty

Studies show that about half the households in New Bedford and Fall River are lead by single mothers and half of those single mothers are living in poverty.

Valerie Bassett, of the Women's Fund of Southeastern Massachusetts, says a new report released by the Institute for Women's Policy Research has found solving that a wage gap between what men earn and what women earn remains one of the main problems.

"Women working the same amount of hours and even the same job usually earn less than their male counterparts," said Bassett "women often end up in careers that actually earn less even if it's the same kind of work."

Bassett says addressing this issue would do a lot to help lift these women out of poverty.

"One of the things this new report... shows is that if we can get pay equity we can cut the rate of women in poverty by half," said Bassett.

The report gave the state as a whole a B+ on indicators related to women’s poverty and opportunity.

To learn more about this report visit the Women's Fund website.