NEW AMERICA MEDIA RELEASES HISTORIC POLL DETAILING DEMOGRAPHICS, CHALLENGES AND SUCCESSES OF WOMEN IMMIGRANTS TO THE UNITED STATES
WASHINGTON—New America Media (NAM) today released an historic poll on woman immigrants to America, research that documents their demographics, reasons for immigrating and incredible will to overcome obstacles to build a new life for themselves and their families.
The poll, conducted by Bendixen & Associates, was released today at a forum discussion and news conference at the National Press Club in Washington, DC.
It found that women immigrants face formidable barriers. Many woman immigrants—Latin Americans (79%), Vietnamese (73%), Korean (70%), and Chinese (63%)—acknowledge speaking little or no English, while confronting anti-immigrant discrimination, lack of healthcare and low-paying employment well below the status of the professional work most did in their home countries.
“The poll establishes that in the latter part of the 20th century women immigrated to America in ever-growing numbers, and are now on the move as much as men, but often face vastly different circumstances and challenges,” said Sandy Close, NAM’s Executive Director. “Women are migrating not as lone individuals but as members, even heads, of families, determined to keep family bonds intact even as they travel great distances and adapt to new cultures. This journey has activated women.”
For instance, the poll found that as many women settled in America, they also radically altered their roles in their private lives. Almost one-third report having assumed head-of-household responsibilities or sharing equally with their husbands the decision-making on everything from household finances to family planning. Moreover, the poll found that the overwhelming majority—Latin American (81%), Chinese (71%), Vietnamese (68%), African (66%) and Arabic (53%)—said they had become more assertive at home and in public after moving to America.
“Women immigrants reveal that they came to America not in search of streets paved with gold – making money was surprisingly low on their list of priorities – but because they saw the US as a place to build better futures for their children, and to make permanent homes for their families,” Ms. Close said. “At a time when more than one-third of US families are single-parent households, 90 percent of women immigrants are raising children in intact marriages.”
US Representative Michael Honda (D-CA) applauded New America Media for highlighting the stories and needs of immigrant women.
“Many in the Asian American and Pacific Islander communities face tremendous challenges accessing important services, from healthcare to education to housing,” said Representative Honda, chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC). “Women at the head of immigrant families often bear the brunt of disparities that our communities face. I look forward to working with my congressional colleagues to address these concerns.”
The poll also found that:
* 82% of Latin American women found discrimination against immigrants to be a major problem for their family, compared to 17% for women from African or Arab countries, and only 13% for those from China. Still, 90% of the Latin American women said they want to become US citizens.
* 40% of immigrant women from Latin America and significant percentages from other regions do not have health insurance. A clear majority of women immigrants without health insurance are unaware of public health programs that could help their children receive medical assistance.
* A majority of immigrant women from China, Korea, the Philippines, India, Africa and Arab countries describe their last job in their home country as “professional.” The study reveals that a substantial percentage of them have not found comparable employment in the United States. Their current jobs in America include working as a hotel maid, restaurant waitress, factory technician, house cleaner and textile worker. These results, and others, indicate that women may well be putting devotion to the well-being of their families ahead of personal job status and pride in choosing to immigrate.
* When asked to name the biggest challenge they faced as women immigrants in the United States, the majority did not cite economic difficulties. Rather, "helping my children achieve success" and "being able to hold my family together" were the top answers—underscoring the importance of family in understanding the motivations and aspirations of this new wave of women immigrants.
The poll results reminded Representative Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) of the challenges her family encountered during their transition to America.
“I found it striking that the data from this historic poll parallels my mother’s own experience in bringing me and my brothers to the United States from Japan in the mid 1950’s—her desire to build better futures for us; her early low-paying, no benefits jobs; her determination to keep the family together as head-of-household,” said Representative Hirono, a member of CAPAC’s executive board. “This survey shows a real need for key decision makers, on all levels of government and in the private sector, to support public policy that improves the quality of life for these women and their families.”
At the panel discussion and news conference, participants said the research data will be instrumental in helping the members of the public and support organizations understand not only the plight of women immigrants, but how government policy can improve the quality of life for them and their families.
“The study clearly indicates that women immigrants in the United States have not only become important contributors to the economic and social condition of their families in the United States but that they also have become catalysts in their assimilation to American culture and in the decision-making process about U.S. citizenship,” said Sergio Bendixen, who conducted the poll.
Further, Olga Vives, Executive Vice President for the National Organization for Women, said, “This is important information to have as we engage our country in meaningful discussions around comprehensive immigration reform, which must address the issues affecting immigrant women and their children.”
The poll of 1,102 respondents has a margin of error of 3 percent and was funded in part by grants to New America Media from Atlantic Philanthropies, Carnegie Corp., Ford Foundation and the Evelyn & Walter Haas Jr. Fund. NAM also received a grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation to assist with distribution of the poll results.
“We are grateful to our supporters who made this research possible,” Ms. Close said. “We believe this data can have a tremendous impact by improving our understanding of immigrant women and their families. This can help make a better America.”
About NAM
New America Media is the country's first and largest national collaboration and advocate for more than 2500 ethnic news organizations. Over 51 million ethnic adults connect to each other, to home countries and to America through 3000+ ethnic media, the fastest growing sector of American journalism. Founded by the nonprofit Pacific News Service in 1996, NAM is headquartered in California with offices in New York and Washington D.C. NAM also partners with journalism schools to grow local associations of ethnic media around the nation. Our 2009 National Ethnic Media EXPO & Awards will honor excellence in ethnic media journalism, forge collective strategies to strengthen the sector, expand its role in risk communications, and improve government communications with its audiences.
Visit NAM's homepage for news and updates on our programs here.
Friday, May 15, 2009
Sunday, May 03, 2009
Fooled Again
With a feeling of YES I posted an article on our home page signaling that women had finally closed the pay gap with men--in government jobs. And now, much to my dismay, I must report that the picture is not so rosy, but it's same old, same old, with women stuck in lower paying non government sector jobs, and even in those jobs are outearned by comparable men.
Men Outearn Women in Almost All Occupations
A new analysis released by the Institute for Women's Policy Research (IWPR) today on Equal Pay Day shows that men out-earn women in nearly every occupation for which data are available.
Of the more than 500 occupational categories for which sufficient data are provided by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, in only 5 occupations do women earn the same or more than men.
Men earn more than women even in jobs that are most common among women, such as
- Administrative assistants: women earn only 83.4 cents for a man's dollar
- Elementary and middle school teachers: women earn 87.6 cents for a man's dollar
- Registered nurses: women earn 87.4 cents for a man's dollar
Men and women still tend to be concentrated in very different jobs, with the most common jobs among women paying less than the most common jobs held by men. For example, the highest paying of the ten most common occupations for women, 'Registered Nurses,' pays $1,011 in median weekly earnings, whereas the highest paying of men's top ten most common jobs is 'Managers, all other,' which pays $1,359 per week. The lowest paying of the most common jobs for women is 'Cashier' at $349 per week, whereas the lowest paying most common job for men is 'Cook' at $404 per week.
Ariane Hegewisch, Study Director at the Institute for Women's Policy Research, says, "Women tend to be in the minority of workers in the occupations with the highest earnings. We need to ensure that women are fully informed about the earnings potential of an occupation before they choose their careers."
The analysis uses data from the Bureau of Labor statistics from 2008.
IWPR Director of Research Dr. Barbara Gault notes, "The data paint a clear picture of a workforce that remains strongly divided on the basis of sex -- with women landing in the worst jobs our labor market has to offer, and earning less than men even in the exact same jobs. Our economy can only thrive when opportunities are equally available regardless of gender or race."
To view the Fact Sheet, see www.iwpr.org/pdf/C350a.pdf
The Institute for Women's Policy Research (IWPR) conducts rigorous research and disseminates its findings to address the needs of women, promote public dialogue, and strengthen families, communities, and societies. The Institute works with policymakers, scholars, and public interest groups to design, execute, and disseminate research that illuminates economic and social policy issues affecting women and their families, and to build a network of individuals and organizations that conduct and use women-oriented policy research. IWPR's work is supported by foundation grants, government grants and contracts, donations from individuals, and contributions from organizations and corporations. IWPR is a 501 (c) (3) tax-exempt organization that also works in affiliation with the women's studies and public policy programs at The George Washington University.
| Institute for Women's Policy Research Elisabeth Crum Communications and Outreach Coordinator email: crum@iwpr.org |
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