Women in the United States are underpaid by an average of 24.1 percent in the workplace, according to glassdoor.com. This means employed women across the nation are compensated 79.5 cents of every dollar paid to male workers. Pay inequality exists even within the same job title, employer and location. That differential is 5.4 percent less, or 94.6 cents on the dollar, of what men are paid.
The difference in median incomes for full-time male and female workers in 2014 was $897 a month, or $10,762 a year, according to Alexandria M. Wright, director of the Yavapai College Regional Economic Development Center. For the same year, the Economic Policy Institute also reported real average hourly wages for 21 to 24 year olds with bachelor degrees at $19.15 for men and $15.29 for women, Wright relayed.
When the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics researched 535 occupations in 2014 and came up with 125 exhibiting comparable earnings data, men accrued more money in all positions, except as stock clerks and order fillers. That finding is reinforced by Demystifying the Gender Pay Gap, a March 2016 report from glassdoor.com, which identifies careers where women earn “less, about the same, or more” than men in the same job. Among the top five careers in each grouping:
- Female computer programmers, chefs, dentists, chief executives and psychologists earn about 28 percent less than men;
- The pay difference drops to 0.2 percent to 0.6 percent in the careers labeled with earnings about the same: event coordinator, logistics manager, food services professional, internal medicine resident, and technical coordinator; and
- Women earn 2.4 percent to 7.8 percent more than men as social workers, merchandisers, research assistants, purchasing specialists and physician advisors.
Income inequality by gender is “detrimental to the economy as a whole,” Wright explained, because it creates “an unnecessary burden on women and families, and ultimately can result in a less productive and fruitful society. It is a contributing factor to the most immediate issue in America today: a decreasing middle class and greater income disparity between the rich and the poor.”
Societal Problem
Family well-being, economic growth and business profitability propel unequal pay to a societal problem. Repercussions extend far into the future, beyond the perception of a women-only issue.
“The lower [that] wages are for any segment, the less cash is available within the community to support businesses and local economies in general,” said Melanie M. Wilson, Ph. D, director of the Women’s and Diversity Center at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (ERAU). “If women, who are more likely than men to be single parents, were paid equitably, there could potentially be less draw upon programs such as food assistance, medical insurance subsidies [and similar social service programs].”
Lower monthly income “translates to increased stress and labor hours in order to meet monthly bills, and less time with family, which means less time to spend with children on homework, which creates further stress on society’s ability to foster a future workforce that will attain a high level of [well-being],” Yavapai College’s Wright elaborated.
Wright described a 125 point difference between the SAT scores of children in the top 10 percent income bracket and those in the bottom 10 percent. She also shared that the United States has one of the widest gaps for mathematical abilities by income among 65 countries participating in the Program for International Student Assessment.
“The capacity of the labor force is the foundation of any strong economy, so this disparity may have long-term effects on the nation as a whole,” Wright continued. “[Pay disparity] is a reflection of culture. If the majority accepts that income disparity prevails into the 21st Century, then the marketplace will continue to hold wages lower for women.”
Parity in 2059
The Institute for Women’s Policy Research (IWPR) estimates that advancements in pay at the same pace as the past 50 years will bring parity in 2059. IWPR also estimates that “the poverty rate for working women would be cut in half if women were paid the same as comparable men.”
The American Association of University Women (AAUW) contends, “As a rule, earnings increase as years of education increase for both men and women. However, while more education is a useful tool for increasing earnings, it is not effective against the gender pay gap. At every level of academic achievement, women’s median earnings are less than men’s median earnings, and in some cases, the gender pay gap is larger at higher levels of education.”
The earnings disparity is global, according to the glassdoor.com research, which establishes the percentage of male pay advantage at 6.3 percent in France, 5.5 percent in Germany and the United Kingdom, and 3.9 percent in Australia. Wilson reports the U.S. as “number 65 when it comes to pay equity, behind countries such as the Philippines, Rwanda and Slovenia.”
Stateside, the gap ranges from women earning 90 percent of what men are paid in the nation’s capital to 65 percent in the state of Louisiana. That AAUW data also pegs the Arizona earnings ratio at 84 percent, with annual earnings rounded to $37,000 for Arizona’s women and $44,000 for men. Even more affected are female minorities and women in slow-growth economies.
“Prescott is a slightly depressed area compared to the rest of Arizona when it comes to incomes in general,” Wilson noted. “The differential between men and women cited in one source is around $3,000 annually, which at lower income levels is quite significant. Remember, women’s wages contribute to family incomes, so children suffer as well when women make less.”
With more women than men of working age in the Quad Cities, the “overall impact on the local economy is greater in terms of [reduced] household spending,” Wright noted.
“Salary differentials add up over time, and over the course of a career, women may make up to a million dollars less than men doing the same work,” Wilson clarified. “They will have less income at retirement and are more likely to live out their lives in poverty [double the rate of men].”
AAUW states that earnings for both genders rise with age and peak at about age 45, followed by a decline after age 65. Additionally, pay inequity expands as workers age. “Women typically earn about 90 percent of what men are paid until they hit 35,” AAUW reports. “After that, median earnings for women are typically 76-81 percent of what men are paid.”
From Wilson’s perspective, “paying women inequitably may [also] contribute to them being viewed as ‘less than’ and contribute to discrimination and harassment in the workplace. Discrimination, including wage discrimination against women, is illegal. The courts need to step up and find entities responsible for discrimination when it happens and lawmakers need to plug loopholes.”
Role for Everyone
There’s a role for nearly everyone in reaching income parity, sources indicate. An April panel conducted by glassdoor.com concluded that salary transparency, individually sharing one’s pay (even anonymously), seeking out companies that embrace transparency, and researching earnings data are gateways to pay equity.
“You reach pay equality when you are laser-focused on employee performance,” advised panelist Dan Henkle, senior vice president of global sustainability for Gap Inc., a leader in the quest.
“Businesses need to wake up to the fact that [pay] equity is good business,” Wilson counseled. “A lot of business practices persist because of stereotypical thinking, or ‘we’ve always done it this way,’ or soft sexism.”
Wilson offers advice to women seeking job changes. “If you’ve done your best to find a fair and equitable workplace, just go for it. Take risks. Operate within your own parameters of ethics and fairness and don’t worry about what others think or say about you, while at the same time being common-sense politically astute. Be scrupulously honest, support other women, and stand up for yourself. If the quality of your work and the quality of your character do not carry you, it may be time to re-evaluate where you are or what you are doing.”
Negotiation of wages is the most important thing women can do to ensure they obtain the best salary and benefits, Wright recommended, citing correlation of routine negotiation with men’s overall obtainment of higher pay.
Because society has trained women to be non-confrontational, Wright counsels them to remember that “negotiating wages is a reasonable and professional method to ensure that your work is valued equitably at your company.”
Wright added, “Attaining additional credentials through one’s career is a must if your intention is to move up the ladder. Don’t be afraid to put your name on an idea. The best initiatives are always a result of teamwork, but it is okay to identify one’s role in a project. Bottom line: women must negotiate their salary at every step of their career if they are to achieve parity in wages.”
Change in the American workplace is afoot in two ways: a call for transparency asking individuals to post their salaries anonymously at glassdoor.com and the 2017 implementation of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Play Act, which requires U.S. firms with 100 or more employees to disclose pay data.
Wilson urged women “to step up and challenge the system. They can win some small victories, and sometimes a resounding one, and every victory makes the next fight a little easier.”
She also encourages male backing. “Men married to or partnered with women should support wage equity, as family income would increase. ‘Do you want your wife, sister, daughter [or] granddaughter to make less because she’s female?’” QCBN
By Sue Marceau, QCBN
Photo by Sue Marceau
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