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SD public defense duties shift from counties to state; SCOTUS appears skeptical of restricting government communications with social media companies; Trump lawyers say he can't make bond; new scholarships aim to connect class of 2024 to high-demand jobs.

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The SCOTUS weighs government influence on social media, and who groups like the NRA can do business with. Biden signs an executive order to advance women's health research and the White House tells Israel it's responsible for the Gaza humanitarian crisis.

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Midwest regenerative farmers are rethinking chicken production, Medicare Advantage is squeezing the finances of rural hospitals and California's extreme swing from floods to drought has some thinking it's time to turn rural farm parcels into floodplains.

MN Makes Big Gains in Closing Gender Wage Gap

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Tuesday, March 1, 2016   

ST. PAUL, Minn. - Moves to close the pay gap for women have made significant progress in Minnesota, but the latest report shows there's still work to be done.

For jobs of equal value, the gender wage gap in Minnesota's state and local governments has been eliminated, according to the report from the state's Office on the Economic Status of Women (OESW).

But OESW Director Barbara Battiste says there's still about a 10 percent pay gap in the state's private sector.

"The reason for that lingering overall gender wage gap," she says. "Women tend to congregate in female-dominated, lower-paid occupations."

The report makes suggestions to help end wage discrimination in the private sector. For one, Battiste says Minnesota lawmakers should consider setting up new pay-equity rules for private companies that have state contracts.

She credits the State Government Pay Equity Act for helping boost women's pay in local government jobs from 77 cents on the dollar compared to men in 1994, to about 88 cents in 2015.

But Battiste says for jobs that have comparable value for employers, that gap has disappeared.

"The trouble is, men and women don't often do the very same job, so it's hard to say 'equal pay for equal work,'" she explains. "So, there's this idea out there of 'comparable worth.'"

She says by paying similar wages for different types of jobs that have comparable worth, Minnesota has become a leader on pay equity.

Battiste is now urging the state's university system to consider a similar pay structure.


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