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Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives has released its annual report on the best and worst places to be a woman in Canada.
The study ranks the country’s 25 biggest cities based on the differences between men and women’s access to economic and personal security, education, health and positions of leadership.
Kelowna saw middle of the pack results placing 13th on the list, with many of the findings being on par with the national average.
Annual earnings
According to the centre, earnings for men and women in Kelowna are below the national average. The wage gap between genders is larger than the national average as well with women earning 66% of what men earn.
Full-time jobs
The findings report that 40% of women in Kelowna hold full-time jobs and unemployment rates for women are below those of men, which is on trend with Canada's national average.
Longevity and health
On average, women in Kelowna live to be 84-years-old, which is above the national average. Rates of screening for cervical cancer are above average, with 71% of women reporting they had a Pap smear in the last three years.
Education
Women in Kelowna are more likely than men to have completed high school, college or university. The share of women and men who hold university degrees is well below the national average, but above average when it comes to college degrees. Women are considerably more likely to have completed a college degree (24%) than men (17%).
Leadership Roles
Kelowna was on par with the national average when it came to women in leadership roles. Women make up 32% of elected officials in the area. Two out of five regional municipalities boast a female mayor. Women hold 34% of the management jobs in the region.
Topping the survey for the third straight year was Victoria, B.C.
British Columbia’s capital is the only city on the list where more women are employed than men. Victoria also comes out on the top of the list when it comes to seeing women in positions of leadership.
The Complete Rankings:
1. Victoria
2. Gatineau
3. Hamilton
4. Kingston
5. Vancouver
6. Québec City
7. St. John’s
8. Sherbrooke
9. Halifax
10. Toronto
11. Ottawa
12. London
13. Kelowna
14. Abbotsford-Mission
15. Montréal
16. St. Catharines-Niagara
17. Winnipeg
18. Edmonton
19. Saskatoon
20. Kitchener-Cambridge-Waterloo
21. Regina
22. Calgary
23. Barrie
24. Oshawa
25. Windsor
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