NM
COMMISSION ON THE STATUS OF WOMEN-
RESEARCH & STATISTICS
Bare Bones Budget Survey
| Paid Family Medical
Leave Recommendation Study |
Dreams and Sorrows: Young
Women in New Mexico |
The Status of Women
in New Mexico's Counties
Bare Bones Budget Survey
The NM Commission on
the Status of Women was pleased to join forces with New Mexico Voices
for Children, as well as other concerned community groups, to address
the alarming rate of poverty in our state. On Tuesday, July 8,2003 the
Bare Bones Budget Survey, a research study almost two years in the
making, was unveiled at a press conference featuring Lieutenant
Governor Diane Denish.
Poverty has long been a
concern for many agencies and especially effects women and children in
the state. In the U.S., New Mexico has the highest child poverty rate;
nearly 25% of our children are living in poverty. New Mexicans also,
on average, have an income that is only 74.4% of the national average.
“With at least 71% of
single mothers in New Mexico that are employed yet still poor or near
poor, it is time we create change,” says Commission Executive Director
Lorraine Dominguez. “Our agency will continue to collaborate and
partner with organizations and agencies to create a better overall
quality of life for all New Mexicans, especially women and children.”
The Bare Bones Budget
Survey studied 52 communities throughout New Mexico to develop a
realistic picture of what the cost of living is for each area. The
results are shocking – 30% of New Mexico’s families are not making
enough to make ends meet. Based on outdated federal estimates, about
15% of our families live in poverty.
“A two parent family
with two children making an average of $31,000 a year is not making
enough to get out of poverty,” said Lieutenant Governor Denish, citing
the survey. “In some communities, this family may earn $45,000 and
still not make enough to get by.”
The study, inspired by
the Self-Sufficiency Surveys of Wider Opportunities for Women in
Washington D.C., shows that bare minimum for families in New Mexico –
poverty—is actually 136% to 247% of the commonly used Federal Poverty
Level measure. The survey looked at four hypothetical families and
what it would cost for them to live in each of the 52 communities.
The study illustrates
the cost of living in New Mexico – showing Rio Rancho to be the most
expensive-- that a family of two adults and two children would need a
minimum of $44,630 annually. This translates that workers need a
combined minimum wage of $21 per hour to afford the minimum
necessities of life like housing, food, transportation, basic
clothing, health care, child care, personal items and taxes. These
budgets make some assumptions like no dental care, no recreation such
as movies or renting videos, no savings, no pets, and no birthday of
holiday gifts to name a few.
Los Alamos came in a
close second, and of the 52 communities, Ruidoso came in last at
$22,678 with a combined hourly wage of $11 per hour needed.
The Governor,
Lieutenant Governor, legislators, and the agencies concerned about the
level of poverty in the state are dedicated to taking this information
to the next level. Remedies discussed already are the expansion of
government assistance programs, attracting better paying jobs to the
state, and creating training opportunities for New Mexico workers.
Get full report from
NM Voices for Children
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Paid
Family Medical Leave
At the request of the
Legislature, the Commission is conducting a task force to study the
costs and benefits of providing paid family medical leave. A report
will be prepared and delivered to the Health and Human Services
Committee of the Legislature this fall. The task for includes a
cross-section of interested parties, including small and large
businesses; those concerned with issues of children, the elderly, and
women; unions, human resource managers, and others.
Depending on what the
Legislature decides to do on the issue, the general parameters are
that workers would be allowed to take leave from work to care for
their own serious health problem, to care for an infant or child, to
care for an ill relative or to take care of elderly parents; that
leave would be paid at less than 100% of wages, based on a shared pool
of contributions (like Unemployment Insurance); and that they would be
expected to return to their jobs.
Paid family medical
leave would especially benefit women workers, as 90% of caregivers are
women. Women are more likely to occasionally need a few weeks of paid
leave to allow them to continue their dual roles of supporting the
family financially and supporting it physically and emotionally. For a
full report, contact the Commission office or
click here.
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Dreams and Sorrows: Young Women in New Mexico
The
girls of New Mexico have voiced their concerns and their dreams and
the NM Commission on the Status of Women listened. In their new
report, “Dreams and Sorrows: Young Women in New Mexico,” the
Commission has become the amplifier of those often unheard voices.
“After
reviewing over 1300 surveys we believe we, have a pretty clear idea of
what it’s like to be a teenage girl growing up in New Mexico,” states
Kathi Brown, Public Relations Specialist for the Commission. “These
girls are full of hope, dreams and ambitions but they also face issues
every day such as violence, drug use, sexual pressure, and poor body
image.”
The
first portion of the project highlights the “Year of the NM Girl:
Needs Assessment Survey” completed by 1209 girls, ages 13 to 18, from
throughout the state. The survey, patterned after the Girls’ Best
Friend Foundation survey in Illinois, was given randomly during the
2004 State Fair as well as middle and high schools in Hobbs, Deming,
Albuquerque, Gallup, Shiprock and Mora. The survey focused on
demographics, social activities, and their opinion on their
communities and safety. Additionally, the girls were asked what they
thought were the three most pressing issues for girls today and the
girls were consistent in expressing their opinion about teen
pregnancy, drugs and sex.
“The surveys are not
scientific,” states Brown,” however we feel the information gathered
is still an honest representation of what girls in the state are
experiencing as they grow up.”
The second survey, the
“Year of the NM Girl Behavioral Inventory Survey,” was given to 158
girls who attended the Year of the NM Girl: Believe in Me conference
held in April 2005. The girls, ages 13 to 18 once again, were asked
about their experiences with personal violence, depression, tobacco,
alcohol, illegal drugs, sex, and their home life. All surveys were
completed anonymously and voluntarily.
The report compares the
respondent’s answers by age and race. Additionally, it looks
specifically at the answers of girls who reported violence in the
home, the girls who admitted to having attempted suicide, and the
girls who were sexually active.
- Some of the
conclusions made in the report are:
• Home is where the girls are. Over 80% of girls said they preferred
to hang out at home for fun when not in school.
• Thirteen year olds were more likely to prefer “girl-only”
programming.
• Consistently girls felt their communities needed to offer more
sports activities for youth.
• Girls are only slightly more likely to ask their friends for
advice (73.9%) over their mothers (73.6%)
• Over 80% of the girls reported to “never” carrying a weapon.
• Depression ranked high in all age groups; however 87.5% of the
16-year-olds reported having felt depressed.
• Over half of the girls reported being the victim of bullying.
“We started the survey
under the premise that although there were many factors that separated
girls from other girls around the state – rural vs. urban, culture,
race – that underneath the exterior they all had similar issues,
concerns, dreams and goals,” states Executive Director Mary Molina
Mescall, “The surveys proved the premise. The surveys show that
regardless of who the girl is or where she lives, they are concerned
but hopeful about their futures.”
It is the Commission’s
hope that agencies and organizations will take this information into
account with programming, creating programs, and talking to girls
about their lives. Most importantly, the Commission hopes agencies,
schools, and parents will see that the girls of our state have a lot
to say about the quality of their lives.
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The Status of Women
in New Mexico and New Mexico Counties-Click
here
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