Massachusetts is again named best state for working moms, but new challenges abound

Back in August 2015, WalletHub analyzed state dynamics across key metrics to determine the best states for working mothers and ranked Massachusetts fifth on the list (see "Massachusetts: a great state for working mothers!" in the August 2015 issue of Massachusetts Employment Law Letter). In 2019, we moved up to the first spot (see “Massachusetts: the best state for working mothers!” in our July 2019 issue). So, what happened in 2020?

Massachusetts remains best state for working mothers

According to WalletHub, Massachusetts continues to be the best state for working mothers in 2020. The study examined 20 key metrics, including daycare quality and costs (adjusted for the median salary of women), access to pediatric services, quality of the school system, gender pay gap information, ratio of female to male executives, percentage of women working with economic security, parental leave policies, average commute times, and the unemployment rate among women.

The data was organized into three broad categories:

Childcare. Despite having some of the highest daycare costs in the country, our state still ranked second overall in this broad category in the 2020 study.

Professional opportunities. Our state ranked seventh.

Work-life balance. For the second year in a row, we came in first in this category.

What will pandemic’s impact be?