Komendat 1

Kyle Komendat
Ms. Douglas
English 112
11 December 2014

Round Table Essay

Gender equality, the measurable equal representation of women and men, is becoming a
pressing issue in todays society (What). For some time now, there has been uproar about the
wage gap between men and women in the workplace. There are many different opinions about
the matter, but for now, we are going to listen to three, very diverse, voices. The three voices
being presented are; one who argues the wage gap is a result of discrimination, another who
states that gender has nothing to do with the gap, and lastly, one describing the wage as having
many contributing factors.
Women earn only 77 percent of the amount men earn (Simon). After seeing that
statistic, a writer for Black Enterprises, Mashaun D. Simon, voices his concerns on the wage gap
discrepancy. Simon begins his article, The Wage Gap Is the Result of Discrimination. When
seeing the title, Simons opinion is already being brought to the table. By discussing the
Paycheck Fairness Act, Simon will plead his case that discrimination is what caused the wage
gap and give a plan to fix it.
The viewpoint that is being represented is that discrimination has an effect on the gender
wage gap. Simon proposes that The Paycheck Fairness Act, which supports the Equal Pay Act of

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1936, would end the discrimination in the workplace. The Paycheck Fairness Act excludes the
discrimination of wages due to someones gender. Simon, who mentions Barbara Lee, a
Representative for Democrats in California, quoted her when she said, the wage disparity
between men and women costs women anywhere from $400,000 to $2 million over a lifetime.
Lees observation backs Simons statistic in the beginning of his article. Mark Trunell, wrote an
article about the glass ceiling, which is the political term used to describe the barrier keeping
women and minorities from climbing the rungs of the corporate ladder, which agrees with Simon
saying there is discrimination with women in the workplace. Trunell exclaims that a study done
by Cornell University economists, which consisted of 3,500 employees in four major cities, said
that 10.6% of men had received promotions during a four-year period versus 7.6% of women
(Trunell). The voices of Simon, Lee and Trunell establish a sense of pride in wanting the wage
gap to reach equality.
Lisa M. Maatz, director of Public Policy and Government Relations at the American
Association of University Women, said that it may had taken more than a decade, but a message
has been sent by the house: Gender-based pay discrimination will not be tolerated (Simon). By
getting the attention of the right people who can make an impact on an issue, such as this, can be
important to make significant changes. The reasoning in which they voice their opinions in such
a matter is simple, they want a change. Many women across America have made recieving equal
pay for themselves a top priority. Equal pay for equal work is a serious issue, and women are
paying more attention in this election season (Simon).
The claim that women face widespread wage discrimination is a myth (OBeirne). Kate
OBeirne, who is the author of the book Women Who Make the World Worse, is on the other
side of the fence when it comes to the wage gap issue regarding citizens. OBeirnes article,

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Women Do Not Earn Less Than Men Because of Sex Discrimination, will argue that women
make less because they purposely choose jobs that pay less regardless to women. By discussing
that, along with seeing that females choose their families over careers, OBeirnes will give her
take on the reasoning behind the gender wage gap.
The next viewpoint being brought onto the scene, is that women choose their own way of
living their lives, putting it all on themselves and not others. Feminists have made the
workplace worse by waging an ideological campaign to portray working women as a victimized
class (OBeirnes). By saying there are miscues in wages, they are not sex based, but reasonably
the result of choices made by mothers attempting to balance family and work. Warren Farrell,
writer and author of Why Men Earn More, disproves the myth of sex discrimination in salaries.
Quoting Farrell, if studies focused on the employment decisions many women make, such as
choosing flexible, fulfilling jobs, working fewer hours, declining to move to desirable locations,
or taking more family leave, it would be clear that these preferences explain disparities in
average wages (OBeirnes). Farrells points comprehend with OBeirnes in which they both
give effective evidence to back up their viewpoints. Christina Hoff Sommers, a resident scholar
at the American Enterprise Institute, examines the Paycheck Fairness Bill, and deems its
misguided, saying it depicts a false picture of women in the workplace. In 2009, a study done by
the Labor Department, states that the wage gap is because of the choices made by individuals
regardless of gender. After reviewing the voices of OBeirnes, Farrel and Sommers, the wage
gap is not just sex discrimination like everybody says, other reasons must be brought into
consideration.
OBeirne mentions that there are a decent amount of jobs that women make more than
men, including aerospace engineering and speech pathology, which does not favor the so called

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sex discrimination involved with the wage gap. At this moment in history, gender-specific
research is funded with a consciousness toward making women in the workplace look equally
engaged but unequally paid (OBeirnes). Throughout the article, OBeirne comments about how
women choose their families over careers, which means they make less money than men who are
focused entirely on their careers. Basically proving the wage gap is due to sex discrimination is
all, but the truth.
Imagine you're a woman interviewing for a job you really want. You get a call the next
day with an offer, and immediately accept it. Later, though, you discover that a male counterpart
earns significantly more than you. When pressed for an explanation, your boss tells you that the
man demanded more when he negotiated his starting pay (Katz). Attorneys Debra Katz and
Justine F. Andronici, specialize in womens rights issues, are looking into why employers use
excuses when discussing womens salaries. Also, they discuss why it is so difficult to prove
discrimination under the equal pay laws since the laws fail to see gender differences in salary
negotiations.
Lastly, the third viewpoint that is being discussed is the fact that when employers are
approached by female employees and asked about their salaries, they avoid the question in order
to not be attacked. This makes them seem greedy, which is not good. A study of master's-degree
candidates at Carnegie Mellon University by economist Linda Babcock found that only 7 percent
of first-job-seeking women negotiated their salary, as opposed to 57 percent of men (Katz).
Babcock includes that women are basically trained not to negotiate and told they would be
penalized by the employer if and when they do. Seeing that women are kept away from
negotiating, Babcock found that at the age of 60, if a female does not negotiate her first salary, it
can lead to a loss of over $560,000. Resident scholar, Evelyn Murphy, who studies at Brandeis

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University, did her own research and found that by not negotiating their salary, women lose
$700,000 to $2 million over the course of a career. Such staggering numbers which make a big
difference in the end. Katz, Babcock and Murphy have binding points of view that helps
understand the scrutiny with women and the wage gap discrepancy.
Now after seeing different voices about gender equality and the wage gap, hopefully
some doors have opened into people grasping the problem and actually doing something about it.
Each viewpoint had all the details to back up the reasons why there is a difference in wages
between men and women. Now, it is up to the people to decide which viewpoint they believe is a
more viable reason to cause a wage discrepancy. The wage gap could be a result of
discrimination, have nothing to do with gender at all, or involve wage having multiple factors
that contribute to the distribution between men and women. In the end, it just depends on the
people and what they believe is the cause for the wage difference, any one of those viewpoints
could present a plausible case.

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Works Cited
Katz, Debra, and Justine F. Andronici. "The Wage Gap for Women." Discrimination. Ed.
Jacqueline Langwith. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2008. Opposing Viewpoints. Rpt. from
"No More Excuses!" Ms. Magazine (27 Nov. 2006). Opposing Viewpoints in Context.
Web. 5 Nov. 2014.
O'Beirne, Kate. "Women Do Not Earn Less Than Men Because of Sex Discrimination." Working
Women. Ed. Christina Fisanick. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2008. Opposing Viewpoints.
Rpt. from "59 Cents, and Other Rot: A Look at Some Feminist Myths." Women Who
Make the World Worse. 2006. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 4 Nov. 2014.
Simon, Mashaun D. "The Wage Gap Is the Result of Discrimination." Are Women Paid Fairly?
Ed. Jennifer Dorman. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2013. At Issue. Rpt. from "Equal Work,
Equal Pay: Congress Seeks to Make Gender Pay Discrimination a Thing of the Past."
Black Enterprise (1 Nov. 2008). Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 4 Nov. 2014.
Sommers, Christina Hoff. "The Wage Gap Is a Result of Women's Choices." Are Women Paid
Fairly? Ed. Jennifer Dorman. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2013. At Issue. Rpt. from "Fair
Pay Isn't Always Equal Pay." www.NYTimes.com. 2010. Opposing Viewpoints in Context.
Web. 5 Nov. 2014.
Trumball, Mark. "The Glass Ceiling Still Exists for Women in the Workplace." Working Women.
Ed. Christina Fisanick. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2008. Opposing Viewpoints. Rpt.
from "Wal-Mart Suit Shows Glass Ceiling Still an Issue." Christian Science Monitor.
2007. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 6 Nov. 2014.

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"What is gender equality?" - International Planned Parenthood Federation. N.p., n.d. Web. 26
Oct. 2014. <http://www.ippf.org/our-work/what-we-do/gender/what-gender-equality>.