Maine ranks in top 10 states for working moms

Map / Courtesy WalletHub Maine is No. 9 in a new WalletHub ranking of the best states for working moms.

Write a Comment

Just in time for Mother’s Day, a new study lists Maine among the top 10 states for working moms.

Researchers at WalletHub, a personal finance website, compared state dynamics across 17 key metrics to identify the best and worst states for what they call an underappreciated segment of the population.

Massachusetts topped the list, followed by Rhode Island at No. 2 and Connecticut at No. 3. The Pine Tree State came in at No. 9 overall just ahead of Delaware to round out the top 10.

Surprisingly, Maine received a strong showing (No. 9) for the child-care subcategory, which takes into account factors including the quality of child care and school systems as well as the number of pediatricians per capita. But the Pine Tree State did not fare as well for work-life balance and professional opportunities for working mothers.

At No. 15 overall, New Hampshire ranked the lowest of the New England states, while Louisiana was dead last at No. 51.

Nationwide, researchers noted that while women make up nearly half of the U.S. workforce, they still earn 82% less of an average hourly wage than their male counterparts and make up only 8.2% of chief executives at S&P 500 companies.

They also note that parental leave policies and other leave policies vary widely by state, and that the quality of infrastructure from affordable child care to public schools is also far from uniform.

Find the full WalletHub report and rankings here.