Our ability to compete in the global economy is dependent on our ability to produce an educated workforce. Because women are an increasing proportion of the workforce, issues of fairness and equal opportunity have become vitally important to ensure that our workforce is well prepared. Even as federal requirements for equity in education and workforce preparation programs change, the state must commit itself to strong efforts to ensure equal access to education and workforce preparation programs. Efforts to guarantee fairness are important because of the increasing reliance on women's wages for the well being of families. Women's low earnings have a direct impact on the number of children living in poverty in Illinois, currently one in five.
Women continue to be over-represented in the lowest paid, lowest opportunity jobs in the economy.
These segregated occupational patterns contribute significantly to women's generally low wages and to the wage disparity between males and females. These patterns are reinforced and perpetuated by differing educational and training paths that men and women are encouraged to pursue. Unequal access to education and training hurts Illinois' competitive position. Barriers to equal educational opportunity for girls and women in science, math and technology-related areas prevent Illinois from preparing its full pool of talent for the technologically sophisticated needs of employers. Such obstacles prevent girls and women from accessing the high wage opportunities available in technical fields.