While the U.S. has made strides toward reducing the gender wage gap over the decades, new research today shows just how far there is to go.

At the current rate of progress, the gender pay gap — the difference between women's and men's earnings — won't close nationwide until 2058, according to a report from the Institute for Women's Policy Research.

Women in Florida might see equal pay the soonest, with the state projected to reach pay parity in 2038.

If you're a woman living in Wyoming, the picture is bleakest. The gender wage gap won't close there until 2159, making it one of five states that won't see pay equality this century.

Here's the research institute's full list:

In 2013 women earned 78.3 cents on the dollar compared with men, up from 76.5 cents in 2012, according to the report, which cites research by Carmen DeNavas-Walt and Bernadette Proctor at the U.S. Census Bureau.

Currently New York is closest to gender wage parity, with women earning 87.6 cents on the dollar. Louisiana is the worst among the 50 states plus Washington, D.C., at 66.7 cents.

In the past few decades, men's earnings adjusted for inflation have been relatively flat, while women's have grown. However, since the early 2000s, women's earnings also have started to stagnate, the report says.

Participation in the workforce has followed a similar pattern.

"Despite progress in many parts of the country, women’s status on employment and earnings either worsened or stalled in nearly half of the states in the last decade,” Heidi Hartmann, president of the research institute, said in a statement.

“When half the country is not seeing any gains in women’s employment and earnings, it is a concerning prospect for the nation’s economy as a whole.”

Instant Insights /

Women in 5 states won&rsquo;t see equal pay until next century

More From HR Executive

Related Stories

Recommended For You

Women in 5 states won’t see equal pay until next century