Rampant Wage Discrimination of Women Does Not Exist
14September

Rampant Wage Discrimination of Women Does Not Exist

Written by Trevor Eaton, Posted on , in Section Inspirational

No matter which way you look at it, men do make more money than women do, but the discrepancy is not as much as you would think.  Beyonce recently wrote an article depicting the existence of wage inequality but blames it on sexism and old world views.  So is it a real problem, or is it being blown out of proportion?

Women enter into different professions

When looking at men versus women as a group, men make a lot more money than women because women usually choose different career paths than men. Areas like administrative assistants, teachers, and nurses are more likely to see a higher level of women versus doctors, lawyers, and construction workers, where it is a more male dominated field.  The difference in choice of profession can have a big impact on how much a person can make over their life regardless if they are male or female.

Bosses would hire only women

When doing an apples to apples comparison with men and women in the same field, men show a slight lead in take home pay by about 4%.  While that may seem unfair, is there more to this discrepancy that just gender inequality.  It’s hard to believe that bosses across the nation are out to stick it to women by paying them a lower wage than their male counterpart. There has to be a reason for the difference in pay.  From a purely economic standpoint, if women were making less money than men doing the same work, with the same experience, then they should be getting the jobs instead of the men.  A business owner would have a financial incentive to hire someone that will get the same job done for less money and help them improve their bottom line.

Based on seniority not skills

Let's face it, we all know someone who is making way more than there skills should allow them to just because of how long they have been at their job.  Most wages are based on seniority, and less on a person’s ability to get the job done the best that they can.  This can be a problem for women during their childbearing years, if they temporarily take time off to raise their children when they do come back to work they have fallen behind in the seniority rank and will probably never catch up because of those lost years.  Is it more rewarding to spend those precious years rearing children properly, or cementing their seniority without any gaps? That is a question that has to be answered on an individual level.

Going out with the guys

Also men and women have different interests, and this can make a big difference in the corporate world.  For example, if men are more likely to play golf than women then women might be missing out on business deals that are taking place on the links. The social aspect outside of the office can create a huge difference in the direction a person’s career path takes.

Not just a left/right issue

Some would argue that this a liberal / conservative problem, and that conservative bosses are only looking out for their profits while liberal bosses would never do that. Unfortunately, that is not true, even President Obama’s cabinet pays women less than their male colleagues, but without the knowledge of their positions and seniority on the staff, there is no way to know why the difference in pay.

Some fields pay women more

On a more positive note, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are several fields in which women make 3-5% more than men doing the same job such as construction laborers, construction supervisors, maintenance painters, aircraft and vehicle mechanics, bakers, teacher assistants, occupational therapists, dieticians and nutritionists, and life, physical, social science and health technicians.

Wage discrimination is never ok

It is never ok for there to be wage discrimination based on age, race, or gender, if an individual has put in the time, and has the knowledge and experience, then they should be paid fairly.  Just because the numbers for men and women don’t equal each other though, doesn’t mean that there is inequality.  The statements that the problem of wage inequality is not as rampant as people would believe are  based on generalities and the overall big picture of the economy. Are there bosses that are sexist and choose to underpay female employees because of tradition? Sure there are, but that doesn’t mean that the overall atmosphere of the labor force is one that chooses to pay women less. 

Women are way more valuable

The choices that we all make in life plays a role in where we end up in life and instead of looking at this from a purely monetary point of view, we should look at it from a quality of life aspect.  The fact that women are able bear and nurture children has a greater reward than any paycheck can give, and no matter how much a man can make, he will never be able to accomplish the role that women play in our very existence.