Texas Women’s Foundation, Dallas Women’s Foundation Research Arm, Releases Austin Metro Area Edition of its “Economic Issues for Women in Texas” Report
Austin, Texas (PRWEB) November 13, 2014 -- Texas Women’s Foundation, the research and advocacy arm of Dallas Women’s Foundation, today released “Economic Issues for Women in Texas: Austin Metro Area,” serving as a complement to the statewide report released in May. The study examines the economic status of women as well as the critical building blocks necessary for women to achieve economic security. The Austin metro area report examines data from Bastrop, Caldwell, Hays, Travis and Williamson counties. The full report breaks down the differences and commonalities for nine metro areas: Amarillo, Austin, Dallas, El Paso, Fort Worth, Houston, McAllen, San Antonio and Tyler.
“Female-headed households make up 30 percent of all households in the Austin metro areas, but 53 percent of all households in poverty,” explains Roslyn Dawson Thompson, president and CEO of Dallas Women’s Foundation and Texas Women’s Foundation. “We know that when you invest in a woman, there is a powerful ripple effect that benefits her family and community. Simply put, increasing women’s economic security makes financially secure families and communities – and that makes for a stronger Texas economy.”
Women’s earnings are increasingly critical for families’ economic security in Texas. The percentage of families with breadwinning or co-breadwinning mothers has increased in the past 40 years from 34 to 58 percent of all Texas families with children. For many families, when women’s earnings don’t cover basic expenses, they must make tough choices about what kind of care their child will receive, the food they put on the table, and the safety of the home and neighborhood they live.
Depending on whether the employer or household is responsible for the health insurance premium, 64 to 67 percent of jobs in the Austin metro area do not pay enough for a one-parent, one-child family to make ends meet and save a little for a college education and retirement. Even for families with two full-time working adults and two children, who have the benefit of employer-sponsored health premiums, 58 percent of jobs in the Austin metro area still do not pay enough for families to make ends meet and save for college and retirement.
“Our goal is that the study and its metro reports will create a common understanding of the issues Texas women face, help us gain a common language about the challenges and opportunities ahead, and lead all of us – community leaders, elected and appointed officials, nonprofit organizations, donors and partners – to find common solutions to improve economic security for Texas women,” explained Dawson Thompson.
To see the full report and the Austin metro report visit: http://www.texaswomensfdn.org
About Dallas Women’s Foundation
Dallas Women’s Foundation is the largest regional women’s fund in the world. It is a trusted leader in advancing positive social and economic change for women and girls. The Foundation was built on the belief that when you invest in a woman, there is a ripple effect that benefits her family, her community and her world. Dallas Women’s Foundation has researched, funded and demonstrated the ripple effect since 1985 in North Texas, granting more than $21 million since inception and over $3.1 million annually to help create opportunities and solve issues for women and girls. With the support of its donors, the Foundation unlocks resources to improve education and quality of life, give voice to issues affecting women and girls, and cultivate women leaders for the future. For more information, visit http://www.DallasWomensFdn.org, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, or Google+.
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Meredith McKee, Minerva Consulting, 972-238-7798, [email protected]
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