Women have become an increasingly important force in the U.S. labor market and especially in its knowledge based creative economy. Some argue that the economic crisis has tilted the playing field away from men, who have borne the brunt of blue collar job losses, and towards women, who are more concentrated in knowledge and service work.

Using data from the American Community Survey (ACS) of the U.S. Census Bureau, this report provides a numbers-driven look at the status of women in today’s job market, nationally and state-by-state (plus the District of Columbia). We develop a measure of the “location premium” states which provide for women overall and for women in the Creative Class. Utilizing several metrics we then develop a “Women’s Earnings Index” which we use to rank the best states for women—in the labor market overall and for Creative Class jobs in particular.

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