ISLAND VOICES
Girls need to master finances
By Betty White
Female students should learn how to be prepared to shape the world in which they live by being financially independent.
In the last 30 years, women have made significant progress in the corporate and entrepreneurial worlds, yet there is still a paucity of women in the highest ranks of leadership.
According to December's Hawai'i Business Top 250, just 15 women hold the highest management positions in the state's Top 250 companies, a mere 6 percent.
Even though women make up half the human beings on this planet, they are projected to hold just 27.5 percent of all Fortune 500 corporate office positions by 2020. In terms of earning power, career advancement and financial security, this is a gender gap that has not yet been bridged.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, women working full time now earn 76 cents on the male dollar. While this is an all-time high for women, it is definitely not yet a cause for celebration.
One factor contributing to this persistent wage gap is the clustering of women in low-wage, traditionally female jobs. These jobs include childcare, teaching, retail sales and clerical. Of course, this work is very important to our society and our economy, but it does not pay as much as do the male-dominated jobs in technology and the trades.
A recent study by the National Women's Law Center found that vocational education courses in cosmetology and childcare were 96 percent and 87 percent female, respectively. On the other hand, enrollment in plumbing and electrical courses was 94 percent male. Lest anyone think these early career decisions are inconsequential, take note: The median hourly earnings of cosmetology and childcare workers are $7.43 and $8.49 respectively, compared with $18.19 per hour for plumbers and $19.29 per hour for electricians.
Our educators must dedicate a portion of their efforts to developing programs that steer the national and state dialogue in a direction that emphasizes the need for the present generation of young women to be prepared to shape the world in which they live by being financially independent.
This starts with girls thinking about financially lucrative jobs and how they are going to manage their money. An examination of present data certainly indicates serious reason for concern: Three out of four working women earn less than $25,000 a year; 40 percent of women aged 51 to 61 lack retirement plans, while only 29 percent of men lack them; the poverty rate for elderly women is nearly twice that for elderly men; half of all married women will eventually divorce; and, on average, in 2001, retired women received a monthly Social Security check for $665, while men received one for $864. Furthermore, on average, an American widow loses her husband at the young age of 56.
To reverse these trends, young women need to control their financial destiny more so than the generations of women who have preceded them. Hawai'i's educators need to declare financial literacy an educational priority. They must teach young girls how to earn, spend, save and invest money wisely.
These skills are essential on the way to real gender equity.
"Empowerment" for women is a catchword you will often hear today. Yet, many times it is devoid of financial substance and becomes mired in the "Prince Charming" myth where young women are rescued by knights in shining armor to live happily ever after. Such is not the case. In fact, women will spend one-third of their lives alone, with too many ending up old, poor and lonely.
Development of skills in financial education is needed early on. Girls need a basic mastery in personal finance, compounding interest, credit card debt, retirement planning, mortgage financing and refinancing, budget consideration, and creating and implementing a business plan. For girls in the 21st century, financial literacy is a much better means to achieving a happily-ever-after life.
Betty White is principal of Sacred Hearts Academy, an all-girls school in Honolulu.
