Gender Wage Gap

Since the beginning of time people have found ways to discriminate against each

other. Race, ethnicity, and religion are primary factors but an underrated factor in

discrimination is gender. Women have long fallen victim to the dominance of

men, and that dominance usually affects their paychecks. While the exact figure is

debated, it is usually accepted that women earn around 77 cents for every dollar

that a man earns. The idea that women who are just as skilled and experienced as

their male counterparts but make less money leads to tension in the work

environment. One of the most surprising facts about the gender wage gap is that it

even affects stereotypically female jobs like nursing. There are more women

nurses than male nurses, but that doesn’t stop men from making up to $10,000

more than their female counterparts. Men have been out earning women in the

nursing field for over 20 years despite women holding the majority in the position.

This goes to show that even in female dominated industries, the women are paid

less. In this paper I will explain why this gap is unacceptable, some potential

reasons why it exists and what can be done to eliminate or reduce it.

When the equal Pay Act was signed in 1963 it was seen as the end of racial

and gender discrimination in the workplace. However, it has not worked out that

way. The bill did narrow the gap, but it did not eliminate the gap. You would think

that as women age, they are paid more and the gap would get smaller, but the wage

gap actually widens the older women get into their peak earning years. The idea
that women work the same hours as men, with the same position, and with the

same education and still earn less money is a stain on our society. Now that it is

clear that the gap exists and it isn’t a good thing, we have an important question:

Why does it exist?

Rachel C. Sayers, author of “The Cost of Being Female: Critical Comment on

Block” touched on one of the most common reasons that is given for why the

wage gap exists. She talks about how women are affected by marriage and having

children. She said “As women are the sex blessed—or cursed, as the case may be

—with the burden of bearing children, they are more likely than men to remove

them- selves from the work force once married. Some women depart from their

jobs only for a 6-week maternity leave; however, a vast number of women take

themselves away from work outside of their homes for far longer periods of time.

This departure from the labor force—characteristic far more of the female sex than

of males” (Sayers, 2011). According to multiple sources, mothers are perceived to

have lower competence and have their commitment questioned. Some scholars

actually believe that the wage gap between mothers and childless women could

potentially be higher than the gender wage gap. Another important reason the

wage gap exists is because conditioning leads many women away from careers in

STEM, which are typically high paid. According to the article by Virginia Franke

Kleist, women join STEM related fields at way less numbers then men do.
 The idea in children’s head that they can be a scientist start at a young age,

but as women grow, they are ushered toward the roles of a housewife, even the

toys marketed toward girls are scaled down versions of house hold items a lot of

the time. For children, they gauge the possibility of achieving a potential career by

who they know that does it, fir little girls, they don’t see women in STEM related

jobs so they naturally assume that those jobs are for men.

One argument for why the wage gap isn’t as bad as reported or that it is

justified is the idea that the fact that women can have children is seen as a negative

to employers. This is because female employees will have to leave their jobs to

recover after childbirth, something that typically keeps women away for at least 6

weeks. Since men are more likely to always be there, they are paid more money.

One way we can make things better for women is having subsidized

daycare, which was mentioned in Sayers’ article. This seems like a small thing but

if women could put their child in daycare without it coming out of her pockets, she

would be more likely to return to the workforce. I’m sure women wouldn’t

abandon their jobs indefinitely if they knew they had something that made it easier

to have a child and go back to work. Another idea that would help is mandatory

paid maternity leave up to 2 months like other countries do. This will make it

easier for women to come back into the workforce, which should be the main goal.
 Works Cited

 Kleist, V. F. (2015). Women in STEM Careers: What is Working Well. Sex

Roles, 73(5-6), 276-278. doi:10.1007/s11199-015-0522-9
 Sayers, R. C. (2011). The Cost of Being Female: Critical Comment on
Block. Journal of Business Ethics, 106(4), 519-524. doi:10.1007/s10551-
011-1017-4