California Budget and Policy Center’s Women’s Well Being Index ranks the overall well-being of San Mateo County women as one of the best in California. San Mateo County’s overall score of 71.7 is one of the highest scores in the state. When it comes to health and economic indicators, San Mateo also scores highly compared to other California counties. Despite these promising overall trends, a closer exploration of the data reveals significant gender and racial pay gaps.

According to the US Census’ American Community Survey, median earnings for female San Mateo County residents is $10,000 less than for male residents of working age. Moreover, nearly a quarter of female residents working full time make less than $35,000, which is below the self-sufficiency standard for single county residents with no children. While the overall proportion of San Mateo women living under the federal poverty level is only 9%, the proportion of women of color living under the federal poverty level is substantially higher. 17% of Black women and 16% of Latina women in San Mateo County live under the federal poverty threshold, compared to 5% of non-Hispanic White female residents.

Financial insecurity and the gender wage gap impact the health of women and children. Research shows that children born to low-income women are more likely to face higher health risk factors throughout their lifespan [1]. And women who are paid less than their male counterparts are at a higher risk of experiencing depression and anxiety [2].

^{1. Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Issue Brief #4: Income, Wealth and Health. 2011. Available at: http://www.rwjf.org/content/dam/farm/reports/issue_briefs/2011/rwjf70448.}

^{2. Wage Gap May Help Explain Why More Women Are Anxious and Depressed Than Men January 5, 2016. Available at https://www.mailman.columbia.edu/public-health-now/news/wage-gap-may-help-explain-why-more-women-are-anxious-and-depressed-men}