Know About Gender Pay Gap
The labor force participation of women has grown significantly since the second half of the 20th century. As of now, women are working longer hours and pursuing higher education in massive numbers. However, despite this significant progress, there remains significant wage gaps between men and women. Mentioned below are some of the elements which are currently driving the gender pay gap in the US.
Differences When it Comes to Industries or Jobs Worked
Researchers, by calculating a wholistic wage gap, can see the effects of occupational segregation or the funneling of men and women into different types of industries and jobs which are based on gender norms and expectations. The so-called ‘women’s jobs’ which are jobs that have historically had a majority of female workforces, such as child care workers and home health aides, currently offer much lower pay and fewer benefits than the so-called ‘men’s jobs’ which are jobs that have predominantly had male workforces, including jobs in various trades such as building and construction. These gendered differences happen to be true across all industries and the vast majority of occupations, at almost all levels, from frontline workers, to mid-level managers, to senior leaders.
Differences in Years of Experience
Women are disproportionately driven out of the workforce to accommodate caregiving and other unpaid obligations. Thus, most women tend to have less cumulative work experience when compared to men. Access to things such as paid family and medical leave can always make women more likely to return to work sooner. However, as of March 2019, merely 19% of civilian workers had access to paid family leave via their employers and only 40% had access to short-term disability insurance benefits to deal with their own medical needs.
Differences in Hours Worked
Because women generally tend to work fewer hours to accommodate caregiving activities and other unpaid obligations, they are also more likely to work mostly part-time. This means women are offered lower hourly wages and fewer benefits, when compared to men who can act as full-time workers.
Discrimination
Gender-based pay discrimination has been made illegal since 1963. However, it is still a frequent and widespread practice. It is particularly more for women of color. Research has shown that it can thrive especially in workplaces that happen to discourage open discussion of wages and where employees tend to fear the act of retaliation. Beyond the explicit decisions to pay women less than men, employers can also discriminate in pay when they rely on prior salary history during the hiring and compensation decisions. Doing this ends up enabling pay decisions that could have been influenced by discrimination to follow women from one job to another.
This brings us to the end of our discussion on the gender pay gap. Now, do let us know some of your thoughts and opinions on the topic.
