Emily Jones

Professor Steele

English 1201

18 April 2021

Gender Wage Disparity

Women have been paid less for doing the same job as men for years even with having

more experience and a better education. Women from around the world, different backgrounds

and stories are coming together to show the government that we should get paid the exact same

amount as a man who does the same job. The fight for equality needs big legal help to make the

biggest impact and to finally help these women and their families and their communities. There

are so many examples of clear discrimination towards women in workplaces and now let’s see

what they are doing to stop this from happening to the next generation of women.

Gender inequality is discrimination on the basis of sex or gender causing one sex or

gender to be routinely privileged or prioritized over another. This has happened to women since

the beginning, putting them into a role of taking care of kids and making dinner. Still today

people say women belong in the kitchen and that men are better. To make a difference and be

seen as equals will help solve the gender inequality pay. In 1963 John F Kennedy signed into the

law The Equal Pay Act of 1963. This law was to make sure it was illegal to pay men more than

women for the same work. It was to protect men and women. This sadly did not ensure complete

equality for women in workplaces. Companies found too many loopholes and weaknesses in the

Act and would get away with paying women less for the same job. In 1960, the pay gap between
women and men was 61 cents to a male’s dollar. It fluctuated for years and was able to get it to

82 cents to a male’s dollar in 2021. If we continue at this rate, women will not reach equality

until 2059, we need everyone’s help to reach equality. Claudia Goldin said in the article written

by Clark Merrefield, “The solution does not have to involve government intervention and it need

not make men more responsible in the home (although that wouldn’t hurt). But it must involve

changes in the labor market, especially how jobs are structured and remunerated to enhance

temporal flexibility. The gender gap in pay would be considerably reduced and might vanish

altogether if firms did not have an incentive to disproportionately reward individuals who

labored long hours and worked particular hours.”. To stop the pay gap we need official

policies, legal protections, and changes in business practices, such as regular pay assessments of

earnings by gender and pay transparency, are necessary to combat these sources of the gender

gap in pay. To make this happen we need to elect officials to fight and make a change for the

people. Peaceful protests with large groups or strike at your work.

The pay gap hurts both men and women. Although it is men who deny women the jobs,

and men who make women afraid to apply, it affects them negatively as well. Men have the

longest hours in the industrialized world because they have to make-up for the low paying jobs

that women or their significant others have. If they were paid equally for the labor, more men

could be with their families more. A child needs time with both parents in order to fully develop

emotionally, and spending time only with their mother or neither parent if both are working long

hours just to pay the bills, can be harmful to their development. State and federal social programs

are also affected because the tax revenues are lower than they should be, which is yet another

example of how harmful the pay gap is to more than just women. Another example of something

being negatively affected by the pay gap would be the community. If pay was equal it would
boost the community, and the community would thrive. In addition, most of those tax revenues

fund vital community services. These community services include emergency services, law

enforcement, water and sewer services, community centers, transportation such as busing, parks,

and public schools. Think of how much this would help communities and these families. These

are not just silly services that can afford to be cut, they are important. It is so vital to make a

better environment for everyone and their families, and it is not a big, difficult change that needs

to be made. It is something as little as decreasing a pay gap that should not have even been in

existence in the first place. That small change could help so many people, communities, and even

federal services.

In the article by Bryce Covert he discussed a case that affected Aileen Rizo, a math

consultant in the education system, in California. She had found that her male colleagues who

were hired at the same time as her were making significantly more than her. Even though she had

more education and experience than these men. When she asked why this was happening, she

found out it was because hiring and recruiters used the question about past salary to see “how

low they will go”. Rizo took this to court and Judge Stephen Reinhardt said “Allowing prior

salary to justify a wage differential perpetuates his message, entrenching in salary systems an

obvious means of discrimination.” (Covert). In the case Rizo v. Yovino on February 27, 2020,

the Ninth Circuit, sitting issued the decision that holding the prior salary cannot be used as a

“factor other than sex” to justify pay differences under the federal Equal Pay Act. Rizo fought so

other women were not discriminated against in the interview process and helped pave for equal

pay. The discrimination in hiring and pay decisions can be both on a conscious and unconscious

level. Women are overlooked by employees because women still have this persona that they are

incompetent and of lesser value.

 Another factor of wage disparity is different levels of educational attainment and it is

very important in deciding earnings. For the past 20 years they have made tremendous progress

for women and these differences now play a much smaller role in gender earning differences.

Evidence shows that women around the world make up 57% of part time work. With that, there

is a wage penalty that comes for motherhood and it amounts to 7% wage reduction per child.

With motherhood comes a lot of responsibilities and flexibility. With schools sending home sick

kids, expensive and unreliable childcare women are usually more part time. These women suffer

to solely take care of their children. Women just need more flexibility for returning to work.

Research from the University of Massachusetts found that fathers are more likely to be hired

than childless men and are even usually paid more. So why do men get better advantages with

having children than the mother? We need equality to make this right and to be fair to these

families and people.

The USA Women’s Soccer Team has been fighting for equal pay for many years now

through a campaign called Equal Play Equal Pay. They have won four Women's World Cup

titles, one being in 1991 which was the first Women's World Cup, again in 1999, 2015 and 2019.

As well as winning four Olympic gold medals, starting with the first Women’s World Cup in

1996, then again in 2004, 2008 and 2012 as well as eight CONCACAF Gold cups. Meanwhile

the men have failed to qualify for the Olympics for three consecutive years now, and have only

appeared in 10 World Cups and have won zero. They have six CONCACAF Gold cups (1991,

2002, 2005, 2007, 2013 and 2017). The team filed gender discrimination against the US Soccer

Federation for being paid less than the men and for equal work. They are fighting to get at least

equal playing, training, travel conditions and equal promotions of games equal to the Men’s

National Team. The women’s team has brought in more revenue than men for US Soccer but are
still being paid less. It would be a different conversation if they were not doing better than the

mens team in all aspects, but they are. The US Men’s National team has even come out to fully

support the women and hope to reach equality. Becky Sauerbrunn, a professional soccer player

who is on the USWNT, once said,¨Women should not go into negotiations thinking that they

should just be happy with what’s given to them. If you feel like you’re owed more, then fight for

it. Don’t be timid or feel like you cannot be aggressive. Men don’t worry about that when they

are negotiating.” The US Soccer association said by 2022 they will discuss if they will raise the

pay or not. (Bieler, Des, and Cindy Boren) These ladies are dedicated and will not stop until they

receive equality and respect.

Just this past March in 2021 for March Madness, viral images of clear discrimantion

surfaced the internet.One of the images showed baggies that were given to each player and the

mens bags had much more than the womens. The “swag bags'' for the men had multiple of

everything: deodorants, soap wash, cologne, lysol wipes, hand sanitizer. Also a 500 piece puzzle,

a hat, book, socks, blanket, stickers. While the womens had one soap, deodorant, sunscreen,

umbrella, socks,hat ,shirt and a scrunchie. With a bag and 2 water bottles and a 150 piece puzzle.

The pictures did not stop there, another picture compared the mens and women's gym equipment

provided also by the NCAA. The women had 6 sets of weight while the men had a whole lifting

bar and 6 sets of weights throughout a whole room. The women also were given limited

containers of their food and men had catering of huge pans, unlimited for their teams. These

women athletes were hurt that they were belittled by the NCAA and are fighting for people to

treat women equal. They worked just as hard as the men to get to where they were in the

tournament. Them sharing the pictures helped raise awareness to the world and to stop this from

happening to the future women. NCAA president Mark Emmert made a statement saying that it
is up to marketing people to improve this gender disparity. He did admit that they dropped the

ball on this and really want to use this as a changing point, and to make a change.

Kanarys Inc. is a platform that gathers and analyzes cultural and demographic data to

help organizations build more inclusive work cultures. Mandy Price, CEO of Kanarys Inc

said,”It is disconcerting to see that even though the business community is well aware of the

benefits of a diverse workforce – such as innovation, employee retention and increased financial

returns – there is still a lack of progress in closing the gender gap." To create gender equality we

need organizations to make changes. It is not in our own hands anymore. It is not something that

can be fixed by one single woman or man standing up and writing a letter. This issue needs the

support of thousands of people who can give a voice to the millions of women/minorities who

were told that they did not have one. It can be as little even as hiring more women, which is a

huge step although it should not have to be. It needs to be that these workplaces encourage and

show women that they can be promoted and hold manager positions. Something as small as

employers promoting women and putting them in positions of power can be a huge help in this

dire crisis that the world is facing, yet ignoring. Statistically, women currently hold only 38

percent in manager positions. There are so many women who are very intelligent, and very

qualified to hold a manager position, but do not hold them due to the sole fact that they are

women. If a man with the same resume as a woman applied to the same job, the man would get

the job because of the stigma around women and men. Men are perceived as more intelligent,

stroger, and more emotionally intelligent than women, and have been for decades, but that is

simply not the truth. It was not the truth in the past, and it is certainly not true in the present. A

woman should not have to fear applying for a job that they worked so hard to qualify for just

because she is a woman. It is completely unfair, and it is really sad to see that humanity has
stooped so low.

The pay gap is 82 cents to a male’s dollar and is even worse for women of different races.

For black women it is 62 cents, Hispanic is 54 cents, Asian is 90 cents and American Indian is 57

cents. Even though gender-based pay discrimination has been illegal since 1963, it is still a

widespread problem and needs as much help as ever. Even though a couple cents seems like

nothing, if you put it into perspective, a full-time year-round woman earned $10,194 less than

her male counterpart.3 Some actions that could shrink the gender wage gap is to invest in

affordable, high-quality, and trustworthy childcare. To make childcare more affordable will help

allow women to work more hours and inhibit long term success in their job. A mother should not

have to pick an unsafe sitter just so she can put food on the table. Women are discriminated

against for the stereotype of their family role, especially maternity leave and etc. Implementing a

national paid family and medical leave insurance program would help these women with

families. Only 12 percent of US workers have access to paid leave through their employers.

Having paid leave would help reduce the gaps in work histories, which women are more likely to

experience. This action could help increase the women’s opportunities. With the bonus pay gap,

women are being shorthanded and receive less in performance bonuses. An Australian study by

Mercer found that men were receiving up to 35 cents more in performance bonuses than women,

even with receiving the same performance rating. Another instance is 70 percent of janitors are

male 88 percent of maids are women. Men make 21 percent higher than the median weekly wage

of a woman being a maid.

Statistically, women are more educated than men and have better degrees, but still are

paid less. It is so crazy to think that women go to school longer than men, women get better

grades than men, and women work so much harder to meet the criteria then men, yet women are
shot down for jobs that they could be so progressive in. Statistics also show that women are

promoted far less often than men. We can figure this out because women make up less than 5

percent of CEOs and less than 10 percent of women are top earners in S&P 500. 54 percent of

women have faced sexual harassment just in the workplace. This puts a huge fear on some

women to show up to work, or debate if they should quit or not. It also puts a huge fear to ask for

promotions or to be paid what they are worth. I know that getting completely rid of this would be

extremely difficult but if companies and corporations can make it clear that they will not be

punished for speaking up or talking to someone about promotions, scheduling, and etc. It could

make many women feel comfortable in their work space and could ultimately make everything

run smoother.

There have been many studies that have concluded that women do not like to take risks

and would rather stay in the box because they are scared that it might hurt their job or even affect

their everyday life. With that in mind, the conclusion that women would rather play it safe and

continuously be discriminated against then stand up for their rights given to them by the

constitution than risk a man once again putting them down and telling them that their opinion is

not valid, can be drawn. The Hewlett Packard report was testing to see what men and women

look for when they are searching for jobs. They found that their data showed that men apply for

jobs when they meet about 60% of qualifications needed and women apply only if they meet

100% qualifications. This is such a horrifying fact because women are so afraid to put

themselves out there, for fear of failure. This not only becomes a disadvantage for their career,

but it becomes a huge disadvantage to the organizations that could miss out on the hidden

potential of the female employees who could be so amazing at the job in question . This fear

comes from the stereotype that falsely states that women need to stay at home and take care of
the kids, the chores, and anything that has to do with homelife. If society can come together and

get rid of that burden that weighs women down, more women would feel free to branch out and

feel like they are good enough to apply for the same jobs that men who are barely qualified for

do not even think twice about submitting an application for. On the other hand, pertaining to the

younger generation, when in STEM , which is science, technology,engineering, mathematics,

there is what is called “B phobia.” B phobia is when girls are more likely than boys to drop

subjects when they earn a B. This is due to the fact that if a woman is not perfect at what she is

doing, she automatically feels like she is not enough. It seems easier to give up on something you

worked so hard for, then to get below perfect. This “B phobia” can definitely transfer to the work

field and out into adult life in general. What women and men need to understand is that some of

the greatest ideas or businesses come by “mistake''. ( Dovarganes , Damian)

There are many groups that are trying to pave a new path for women to be compensated

equal to their male counterparts. One group who is advocating for the pay gap to come to a

complete end is Equal Pay Today. This group formed due to seeing the unfair treatment of

women in the workplace and they wanted to challenge the legal policy as well as any cultural

barriers at all levels in which prevent women from achieving equal pay. Equal Pay Today hosts

campaigns that fight not onlyfor the pay gap and things that relate to the monetary part of

discrimination, but campaign for anything that could ultimately affect female earnings. One

example of another type of campaign would be job segregation where women are kept in roles

that are “traditional female roles.” Equal Pay Today also fights for diminishing pay reductions

for caregiving responsibilities, or even for things such as pregnancy because those are things that

are usually expected of women, and things that women should not get paid for because men do

not have such expenses..

 These kids of the next generation have seen the hardships that these women have been

facing for so long, who are fighting so hard for them. On October 17, 2020 thousands of people

marched throughout Washington DC and in cities nationwide to protest for equality for gender,

racial, and LGBTQ+ throughout our Nation’s capital as well as other big cities worldwide. It is

such an amazing thing to see these athletes, celebrities, artists, and maybe even your neighbor

rally up to speak up for what they believe is right, especially after being told that they were not

allowed to have an opinion for so long. These idols speaking out and saying that you are worth

more than what society has labeled you for so many years is so inspiring to young minds. It is

especially influential to younger girls who already feel the pressure to fit into society and see it

all of the time without even knowing that they were being discriminated against. Diminishing the

pay gaps, as well as any other forms of discrimination is the only solution to this problem that

seems to never end. Standing up and demanding change could be a chance to finally unite

women and men, as well as create a different, and much healthier lifestyle for our children.The

only way that change is possible is for us as people to decide that enough is enough. It is all up to

us to change these stereotypes.

With all that being said, women deserve to be paid equal to men for doing their job the

same as a man does. Women should especially have an equal shot at being promoted and given

fair chances with an enforced criterion for being promoted or to determine salary to ensure no

discrimination of any kind is a factor in the decisions being made. One day, hopefully soon, the

concept of paying women equally will be the widely accepted norm and not just a pipedream.

Until then we need all the help we can get to make this change.
Work cited

2 https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2019/03/an-economist-explains-why-

women-get-paid-less/

Gould, Report • By Elise. “What Is the Gender Pay Gap and Is It Real? The
Complete Guide to How Women Are Paid Less than Men and Why It Can't Be
Explained Away.” Economic Policy Institute, 26 Oct. 2016,
www.epi.org/publication/what-is-the-gender-pay-gap-and-is-it-real/.

Bieler, Des, and Cindy Boren. “‘One Cannot Simply Outperform

Inequality,' Megan Rapinoe Tells House Committee on Equal Pay Day .”
The Washington Post, 24 Mar. 2021,
www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2021/03/24/megan-rapinoe-uswnt-white-
house/.

Bleiweis, Robin. “Quick Facts About the Gender Wage Gap.” Center for
American Progress,
www.americanprogress.org/issues/women/reports/2020/03/24/482141/quic
k-facts-gender-wage-gap/.

Dovarganes , Damian “Six Reasons Why Equal Pay Is Still Important.”

Center for American Progress, 16 Jan. 2009,
www.americanprogress.org/issues/women/news/2009/01/15/5476/six-
reasons-why-equal-pay-is-still-important/.

COVERT, BRYCE. Shibboleth Authentication Request, 1 July 2018, web-a-

ebscohost-com.sinclair.ohionet.org/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?
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Merrefield, Clark, and About The Author Clark Merrefield Clark Merrefield joined
Journalist’s Resource in 2019 after working as a reporter for Newsweek and The
Daily Beast. “Pay Gap between Men and Women: What the Research Says.” The
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~:text=Women%20working%20full%2Dtime%20in,cent%2Dper%2Ddollar
%20discrepancy.