Women’s Issues Committee

April 2007

REPORT ON THE WOMEN'S COMMISSION OF SANTA CRUZ COUNTY
by Sheila De Lany

The Women’s Commission has been concentrating on the Status of Women and Girls Report (SOWAG), a project that has never been done before in Santa Cruz County. The Report will present data on women and girls in six issue areas:

• Economic Justice,
• Violence Against Women and Girls,
• Health Care,
• Education,
• Criminal Justice, and
• Political Participation.

Commissioners and volunteers – students and community members – have been gathering data, conducting interviews and focus groups, and doing surveys in the various areas to find out just what the picture is in our County!  While there are many reports of various kinds, none “looks at the information through a gender lens,” as this will.  The Report will also note best practices, resources available in the various areas, and make recommendations for policy and implementation by elected officials, educators, agencies, nonprofits and others.

In late March, members of the working group presented a brief progress report to the Board, on the Report, pointing out some of the data we have gathered to date, and their implications.  Here are just a few of our findings:

In the area of Economic Justice:  
QUESTION:  What is the self-sufficiency income for a single adult in Santa Cruz County – what is the minimum amount per year it takes to live here without any public assistance?
ANSWER:  $20,195.

Sounds neutral – but – look at it through the gender lens:

• Men’s median income:  $30,174.
• Women’s median income:  $19,018   ($11,156  less!!)

CONCLUSION: Women in Santa Cruz, with or without children, have a much more difficult time than men making ends meet!

From Health Care:
QUESTION:  What health coverage do employed women have?
ANSWER:  Full-time employees of large employers enjoy comprehensive health insurance. BUT:  Most employers hire the majority of their workers for 20 hours or less a week, so they don’t have to offer coverage because they cannot afford the insurance costs.

Through the gender lens:  Over 30% of all employed women in the county are in this category – and about 77% of these women qualify for some kind of state medical assistance.
CONCLUSION:  We need Universal Health Care for people, not for insurance companies – their health is assured! 

ANOTHER QUESTION:  What is the teen pregnancy picture in Santa Cruz?
ANSWER:  In 2005, there were 341 births to teen mothers:  308 to Hispanic, 29 to Caucasian, 2 to African American, 2 to Asian American.  About 17% of these births were the second or third for the mother.  About 13% of these births were pre-term, often indicating less-than-optimal health.  Most were Medi Cal funded.
CONCLUSION: Teens are having babies they can’t afford, and many of the babies will face health challenges as well as the difficulties of living in poverty.

Beyond this conclusion, what are the implications? 

• That compared to other teens, many Hispanic girls don’t see independent futures for themselves.
• That they aren’t getting culturally appropriate safe-sex and family-planning messages.
• That they aren’t receiving educational opportunities that inspire them to make other choices. 
• AND that it will even more difficult for them to meet the economic self-sufficiency standard than for other women.

These are some of the pieces of the puzzle the Commission is putting together, to give us a clearer picture of women’s and girls’ lives in our County, what is working, what needs to be done, and what to do to make things better!

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