A just-reased analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data, conducted by the National Partnership for Women & Families, shows that Latinas are suffering from a pervasive gender-based wage gap in the very states where the majority of them work. In the 20 states with the largest number of Latinas who work full time, year round, the wage gap ranges from 51 and 68 cents for every dollar paid to men in those states.

Nationally, Latinas are paid just 60 cents for every dollar paid to all men, according to the press release on the analysis. That amounts to a loss of $19,182 each year. In general, women of color fare worse than women overall, who are paid 77 cents for every dollar paid to all men—or $11,084 less per year.

“Women of color are hard hit by a kind of perfect— and perfectly devastating—storm caused by discrimination, a struggling economy, and the country’s failure to adopt family-friendly workplace policies,” said Debra L. Ness, president of the National Partnership for Women & Families. “These new data show that the wage gap is costing women of color thousands of dollars in critical income each year that could be spent on food, rent, health care, and meeting other fundamental needs for their families. It’s an unacceptable situation that should be a resounding wake-up call for lawmakers who have the power to do something about it."

The state-specific findings for all 20 states can be found at www.NationalPartnership.org/LatinaGap. The National Partnership also conducted a matching analysis for African American women in 20 states, which can be found at www.NationalPartnership.org/AAGap.)

According to the new analysis:

• Among the 20 states with the largest populations of Latinas working full time, year round, the wage gap is most severe in New Jersey and Washington, where women are paid just 51 cents for every dollar paid to men in their states.
• Of these states, Texas and California have the largest populations of employed Latinas, and they are paid just 59 cents and 60 cents, respectively, for every dollar paid to men in the states.
• Among the states analyzed, the wage gap is smallest for Latinas in Florida and New Mexico, but Latinas are still paid only 68 cents for every dollar paid to men in the two states amounting to more than $13,000 in lost income each year.
• African=American women in Oregon, Maryland and Illinois are paid just 54 cents for every dollar paid to their states’ men.
• And, in New York, Latinas are paid 64 cents for every dollar paid to New York men.