Study ranks Hamilton as one of the worst cities to be a woman

A new ranking of Canadian cities puts Hamilton near the bottom of the pack as a good place for women to live.

A new study from the Centre for Policy Alternatives ranks Hamilton as 20th on a list of 25 cities in terms of women's income, education, health and security. That's down from last year, when the city ranked tenth.

The report ranks Hamilton low for leadership, education and economic security for women. The city fared better for health and security.

Kitchener-Waterloo was 25th on the list, while Victoria was No. 1.

In Hamilton, the report says, employment rates for women are slightly below the national average.

We can't assume because one woman has moved ahead, they've all moved ahead.- Denise Christopherson, Hamilton YWCA

And the gap between men and women who are employed is larger than average. Only 39 per cent of women have full-time jobs compared to 64 per cent of men. Once they're in those jobs, women earn 74 per cent of what men do.

The wage gap is no surprise, said Denise Christopherson, CEO of the Hamilton YWCA. 

"This is something we've been talking about as feminists going back ot the 60s and 70s and we really haven't moved it that much," she said.

The city needs more leadership programs for women and girls, and those programs need stable funding, she said. That includes mentorship programs to encourage more girls to pursue leadership roles.

And while women have made great strides, the struggle particularly remains for women of colour, she said.

"We can't assume because one woman has moved ahead, they've all moved ahead."

The report's employment gap doesn't factor in seniors and retirees, said Sara Mayo, a social planner with the Social Planning and Research Council. And more Hamilton seniors are women.

We are in the early research and planning stages of this.- Amanda Kinnaird, spokesperson for Mayor Fred Eisenberger, on the mayor's pledge to create a more diverse city hall

But the report, and Hamilton's ranking, also show the need for more local affordable child care, she said. That's still one of the biggest barriers to women working.

Mayor Fred Eisenberger included the gender gap in an election promise in October. He said he still plans to deliver.

While running for mayor, Eisenberger pledged to create an "equity and inclusion lens" to use when creating municipal policy.

Spokesperson Amanda Kinnaird said Eisenberger hopes to bring the framework to council in the fall.

"We are in the early research and planning stages of this," she said.

The report includes Hamilton, Burlington and Grimsby, which is the Statistics Canada census metropolitan area.

Here are some other figures from the report:

• The difference  in poverty levels among men (11 per cent) and women (13 per cent) is about average in Canada.
• Women account for 35 per cent of senior managers in the city, but only one in four city councillors. That puts Hamilton at 23rd among 25 cities.
• The life expectancy of women is 83 years, and 78 years for men. Fifty-eight per cent of women rated their health as very good or excellent compared to 56 per cent of men. Hamilton ranked sixth in terms of health. 
• Rates of sexual assault and partner violence are lower than average. Police recorded 293 incidents against women in 2013, although the study says that the level of police reporting isn't an accurate measure given that many incidents go unreported. Hamilton ranks fifth in terms of security.
• Women in Hamilton are more likely than men to have finished high school, college or university. The rate of college graduates are higher than average at 23 per cent. Men are more likely (11 per cent) to have finished trades training or apprenticeships. Hamilton ranked 19th in terms of education.