The New York Times asks the simple question, Why Is Her Paycheck Smaller? :
Nearly every occupation has the gap — the seemingly unbridgeable chasm between the size of the paycheck brought home by a woman and the larger one earned by a man doing the same job.
It doesn't matter where the job lies on the income spectrum: all but a handful fall below the bar of equal pay. The percentage gap is about the same for lower-wage workers, like medical assistants, as it is for higher-wage workers, like physical therapists.
They have a nice, interactive graph which shows the details on the wage gap.
The article states the reason is good old fashioned discrimination but then refers to personal choices.
I don't think so. The reasons are more when women try to go for those top jobs, their personal choice is really about being forced out of particular high paying career areas.
For example, women in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics have a drop out rate of over 50%.
Does anyone in their right mind believe a woman, spending 4 years to 10 years in education alone, never mind all of the work experience required to become highly skilled, just magically abandons all of that, plus a high income...due to personal choice?
Why is it, when it comes to money, a guy is going to gun for those big paycheck bucks but a woman is somehow making a choice? Uh, women want and need that income. Inherent in these reports is some sort of mythical Prince Charming in the wings who is the real breadwinner. There are obviously some hidden assumptions trying to imply women are just making choices when in fact they need and want the bucks! Women are the breadwinners. There is no mythical Prince Charming in the wings or some fantasy if one comes along she is going to make a choice to not have a strong, powerful career position and corresponding compensation.
Yet in terms of layoffs, well, equality is alive and well.
Even worse, in terms of the overall size of the workforce for women, they are losing ground.
The silence is deafening on discrimination against women as well as older workers. Stop assigning some sort of personal choice as a motivator to women...that alone is discriminatory in and of itself...and it tries to imply somehow what is happening...is not happening...
What is happening? Discrimination, even in the studies reporting on it...is alive and well.
While you are correct to
While you are correct to acknowledge that situations have changed and women can no longer count on a “prince charming” to be her breadwinner, I think the solution to the problem lies more in reforming labor laws which no longer reflect our situations. Most of the labor laws were written in the 1930’s and reflect the circumstances of the time which was primarily men in the workplace and women staying home. We all know this has changed. However, I do not think it is completely fair to say that this is outright discrimination. It is fair to say that women should not be forced to make a decision about either having a career or being a mother. Most women want both and this is what our labor laws need to reflect. I think we need to focus on giving women the freedom to make more of their own choices. We should be working for workplace flexibility, portable benefits and tax fairness.
http://www.familyissues.ncpa.org/