MSMU RSWG 2023 final - Flipbook - Page 17
⊲ Promoting Economic Security: What the research suggests
Data show a direct correlation between educational attainment and those living in poverty: A higher
level of education correlates with a lower poverty rate. Likewise, stable, full-time employment is an
important factor in keeping families out of poverty.
FIGURE 5
POVERTY RATES OF CALIFORNIA FAMILIES BY EDUCATION AND EMPLOYMENT
OF HOUSEHOLDER36
ALL FAMILY
HOUSEHOLDS
34%
SINGLE WOMEN
HOUSEHOLDER
26%
21%
19%
19%
14%
13%
9%
10%
9%
4%
ALL FAMILY
HOUSEHOLDS
LESS THAN
HIGH
SCHOOL
Source: U.S. Census
Bureau, 2021 American
Community Survey
1-Year Estimates
HIGH
SCHOOL
DIPLOMA
SOME
COLLEGE,
ASSOC. DEGREE
BACHELOR’S
DEGREE OR
HIGHER
6%
6%
2%
ANY
EMPLOYMENT
PAST 12 MOS.
FULL-TIME
EMPLOYMENT
FOR PAST 12 MOS.
Statistically, education and employment are instrumental to economic security — and education
remains an important key to securing both gainful employment and sufficient wages.
Women’s wealth
As the last few years taught us, there will always be times when income is suddenly reduced or lost as a
result of unemployment, illness, or other catastrophic circumstances such as a pandemic. In these times
of crises, economic security is only possible with financial reserves from which to draw. These reserves
may be in the form of cash, savings accounts, retirement accounts, investment funds, or as equity in a
business or property.
Although this type of wealth may be inherited, for most people it is accumulated through saving and
investing on a regular basis. Since women — and especially women of color — have traditionally earned
less income, they remain at a disadvantage when it comes to accruing financial assets. The greatest
source of wealth for many people is equity in an owned home. In California, the 2020 median net worth
of households was $247,000; when equity in a home (market value of the home, minus mortgage/
housing costs) is excluded, that net worth drops to $71,500.37
There have been various estimates of individual wealth, but a 2016 study focuses on major disparities
in wealth by gender, race, and ethnicity.38
The racial wealth gap among single women is alarming: for every $100 owned by White women,
Latinas own $10 and Black women own $9.
Given the wealth disparity and women’s lower median incomes, it is not easy for many women to
build wealth. Some strategies have been advanced, however, including a focus on entrepreneurship and
getting more women — especially women of color — engaged in investing.39
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