The 5 cities where women outearn men the most
There are dozens of ways to slice and dice the gender-pay gap, but here's another way of looking at the issue: only four percent of cities where the U.S. Census Bureau tracks income offer women higher pay than men.
That means there are only 22 U.S. cities where women's paychecks are bigger than their male counterparts, although often that pay premium rings up to only a fraction of a cent, according to an analysis from NerdWallet. By comparison, women nationally make just 78.8 cents for every $1 earned by men.
The gender-pay gap is a complex issue, with the causes hotly debated by economists and political scientists. Some argue that the pay discrepancy is a byproduct of women's life choices, given many scale back their careers to take care of family. Still, research that compares the earnings of recent college graduates who have similar educational backgrounds has found the wage gap remains. In a 2012 study, the American Association of University Women found that women with engineering degrees earned 88 cents for every $1 earned by their male counterparts one year after college graduation.
Many of the cities where women outearn men have one thing in common: men and women alike earn incomes below the national median. (It's important to note that all the data are for men and women who are working full time.) The national median income in 2013 was $50,033 for men and $39,157 for women.
"Most of the cities have a median income for all workers of both genders below the national average," said NerdWallet analyst Courtney Miller. "There is something going on with low-income communities with women being able to do better in those communities."
Because income in these cities is generally lower than the national median, it could be that the federal minimum wage is setting a floor on workers' wages regardless of gender, although Miller noted that the issue is complex and could be related to a number of factors, such as how job opportunities are changing in those cities.
Read on to find out which U.S. cities offer the biggest pay premiums to women.
5. Carson, California: 109.3%
In this city in Los Angeles County, women take home more than $1.09 for every $1 that their male counterparts earn. While that might sound healthy, full-time workers in Carson make $30,269 annually, or far less than the national median. In the U.S., men who work full time earn median income of $50,033, while women with full time jobs earn $39,157.
With about 93,000 residents, Carson's biggest employers include Prime Wheel Corporation, a manufacturer of aftermarket automobile wheels, and See's Candy Shops, a chocolate confectioner that's owned by Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway.
4. Albany, New York: 111.3%
Women in the state capital of New York state earn slightly more than $1.11 for every dollar earned by their male counterparts. The 2013 median income for all full-time workers in Albany was $29,814.
About one-quarter of the city's workforce is employed by state and local governments, where pay between genders tends to be more equal than in other fields. At the same time, the Albany region has witnessed a shift in employers, with its historic manufacturing, logging and farming industries -- all traditionally male endeavors -- significantly declining during the 1990s, according to the Capital Region Workforce Investment Board.
The biggest private employers in the Albany region now include several hospitals, including Albany Medical Center Hospital and Ellis Hospital.
That echoes changes in the national job market, with new opportunities in health care emerging since 2005, while the male-dominated fields of manufacturing and construction have declined, NerdWallet found. The workforce in healthcare, education and social services is comprised of more than 70 percent women.
3. Orlando, Florida: 113.3%
On a dollar basis, women in Orlando make more than $1.13 for every $1 earned by their male counterparts. The median income for all workers is $27,556, NerdWallet said.
The largest employer in the Orlando area is Walt Disney World, which employs 62,000 people. Other big employers include Florida Hospital and Orlando Health, which are both in the health care industries, which tend to employ more women than men.
Women's higher pay comes after a dramatic shift in the employment structure of Orlando, where jobs in education, health care and social services surged almost 80 percent from 2005 to 2013, NerdWallet found. Orlando had the fourth-highest change in the gender wage gap during that time, out of all cities tracked by the Census, which helped tip the scale in women's favor.
While women's incomes have surged in the city, men haven't been as successful, the study found. Between 2005 to 2013, women workers in Orlando saw their median earnings rise 17 percent to $36,925. Men in Orlando, however, saw their median income drop 18 percent during the same time period.
2. Trenton, New Jersey: 118.2%
As the old slogan "Trenton Makes, the World Takes" suggests, the capital city of New Jersey was once a manufacturing hub of America.
But that's no longer the case for Trenton, as its mills and factories closed up in the 1970s, leading to a long decline in income and population. Today, most of the workforce is involved in government or in nonprofits or other related sectors. Ninety percent of all office space is owned or leased by government agencies.
That shift away from manufacturing may have helped give the leg up to women in this city, where women make more than $1.18 for every $1 earned by men. The overall median income for workers in Trenton is $21,824.
1. Inglewood, California: 120.6%
Women in Inglewood California earn more than $1.20 for every $1 earned by men. This city in Los Angeles County is known for The Forum, an indoor arena where performers ranging from Led Zeppelin to Michael Jackson have taken the stage.
The biggest employers include the city of Inglewood, its school district and Centinela Hospital, with jobs offered in occupations that tend to attract more women than men, such as medical assistants or teacher's aides.
The gender pay gap has closed considerably in Inglewood, but the cause may be a shift away from industries where men tend to hold more jobs. The number of construction jobs in Inglewood, for instance, declined 46 percent from 2005 to 2013, NerdWallet found. The city's manufacturing jobs declined by 29 percent in the same period.
Below are the other 17 U.S. cities where women outearn men, along with women's income as a percentage of men's.
6. Hollywood, Florida: 109 percent
7. Oakland, California: 108.8 percent
8. Elk Grove, California: 105.9 percent
9. Hayward, California: 104.5 percent
10: Miramar, Florida: 104.1 percent
11. Yakima, Washington: 103.2 percent
12. Birmingham, Alabama: 102.3 percent
13. Wilmington, North Carolina: 102.2 percent
14. Escondido, California: 101.5 percent
15. Las Cruces, New Mexico: 101.1 percent
16. Deltona, Florida: 100.9 percent
17. South Gate, California: 100.8 percent
18. Dallas, Texas: 100.5 percent
19. Richmond, California: 100.3 percent
20. Silver Spring, Maryland: 100.3 percent
21. Chattanooga, Tennessee: 100.3 percent
22. West Palm Beach, Florida: 100.2 percent