Wage discrimination against women still exists according to facts presented in the document. Women earn only 78 cents for every dollar earned by men, costing the average woman over $10,000 per year. While some argue biological differences or career choices justify the wage gap, others cite wage discrimination and the undervaluation of work in female-dominated fields. Interviews with an HR professional confirm women make up most HR roles but earn only 80% of what men earn. The document advocates for policies like the Paycheck Fairness Act to address ongoing wage discrimination.
2. Background Information
US female workers earn $.78 for every $1 earned by men
Take 44 years for women to reach wage equality
Discussion of wage/salary information is discouraged and could lead to
punishment
2013 women’s median annual earnings were $39,157 compared with $50,033
for men
3. What Women Lose...
Four months supply of groceries: $2,447
Five months child care: $2,958
Three months rent and utilities: $2,424
Five months health insurance premiums: $1,550
Four months student loan payments: $1,117
Five tanks of gas: $287
Total: $10,784 per year
4. iClicker Question
How many cents per dollar do you think
women in Wisconsin earn compared to men?
A.Less than 70 cents
B.70-76.9 cents
C.77-79.9 cents
D.Greater than 80 cents
5.
6. Wage Discrimination
Median weekly earnings of full time workers in 2014:
$719 for women compared to $814 for men
Male-Dominated occupations tend to pay more than
female-dominated occupations at similar skill levels
Nearly twice as many women as men work in occupations
with poverty wages
Institute for Women's Policy Research
9. McIntosh’s Theory
3 Main Points
White and Male Privilege
White men earn more than
women in the same fields
of work
Prevalent for colored women
African American women earn
68.1% of white males
10. Bunch’s Theory
Bunch’s Excuses
Women’s rights vs human rights
Men political gender
Sex discrimination is less important than matters of
survival
Related to Alternative Views on Women’s Wages
11. Alternate Positions & Evidence
Biological Differences
Women are family oriented
Maternity leave/raising children
Physical/emotional differences
Men tend to aim for higher positions than women
Examples:
Doctors vs. Nurse
Manager vs. Secretary
Principal vs. Teacher
12. Interview: Kari Dahl
Kari Dahl - Human Resources Professional
20+ Years Human Resource Professional for Fortune 100 Companies
Human Resources Managers
● Early 1900’s “Welfare Secretaries”
● 71% Are Women
● Earn Only 80% of Men's Earnings
13. Interview: Kari Dahl
● Not Surprised
● Starts slow, slower progression of wage
increase/unnoticed for long period of time.
● Authoritarian vs Facilitative
● Woman Against Each Other
● Leadership Needs Followers
14. Conclusion
Wage discrimination is still an ongoing issue
Acts haven’t passed (4 times)
Opposing views
Biological differences
There are steps in the right direction
15. Sources
Slide 3: http://www.iwpr.org/initiatives/pay-equity-and-discrimination
Slide 5: http://www.iwpr.org/initiatives/pay-equity-and-discrimination
Slide 6:“Workplace Discrimination and the Wage Gap”. National Women’s Law Center. n.p., 2014. Web. April 2015.
Slide 7: https://www.aclu.org/equal-pay-equal-work-pass-paycheck-fairness-act
Slide 8: Bunch, Charlotte. “Women’s Rights as Human Rights: Toward a Re-Vision of Human Rights”. Ethical
Reasoning Theory and Issues. Ed. Meyer, Matthew. Acton, MA: XanEdu, 2015. 88-96. Print.
Slide 9: “Lips & Hips.” Lips Hips” N.p., n.d. Web. 06 May 2015.
Slide 10: McIntosh, Peggy. “White Privilege and Male Privilege: A Personal Account of Coming to See Correspondences
through Work in Women’s Studies”. Ethical Reasoning Theory and Issues. Ed. Meyer, Matthew. Acton, MA: XanEdu, 2015.
76-87. Print.
Slide 11: Interview Dahl, Kari. Personal, E-mail interview. April 23, 2015. Senior Human Resources Professional at
Fortune 100 Companies
Gourdreau, Jenna. “Top 10 Best-Paying Jobs for Women In 2011.” www.forbes.com 20 Apr. 2011. Web 23 Apr. 2015.
<http://www.forbes.com/2011/04/20/best-paying-jobs-for-women_slide_2.html>.
Slide 15: http://blogs.rj.org/wrj/2014/04/07/reform-leaders-call-on-senate-to-end-gender-based-wage-discrimination/
Alana
US female workers earn on average 78 cents for every dollar earned by men which ends up being a 22% gender gap
If the earnings ratio continues at the same rate since 1960, it will take about 44 years or until 2058 for women to reach wage equality
About half of all workers report that discussion of wage and salary information is discouraged and could lead to punishment
In 2013, women’s median annual earnings were $39,157 compared to $50,033 for men which is a $10,876 difference
Jenna
Alana
Sam
Wisconsin women earn .77-.79 cents per every dollar a man makes
As you can see in this graph wage discrimination is a national issue that affects women in all areas of work
Worst State: Louisiana- Women earn .66 cents for every dollar a man makes
Best State: Washington D.C.- Women earn .91 cents for every dollar a man makes
Sam
According to the Institute for Women’s Policy Research the median weekly earnings in 2014 for full time workers was 719 dollars for women compared to 814 dollars for men
Male-Dominated occupations tend to pay more than female-dominated occupations at similar skill levels
Men in software develop (male dominated field) earn $1,736 per week on average compared with $1,457 for women)
While women elementary and middle school teachers (Female dominated field) earn $956 compared with $1,096 for men.
3) Nearly twice as many women as men work in occupations at or below the Federal Poverty Wage line
Sam
The Gender wage gap has been an ongoing issue since the 1950’s
From 2005-2014 the weekly wage gap narrowed just 1.5 percent compared with 4.9 percent from 1995-2004 and 8.1 percent from 1985-1994.
Alana
We believe that wage discrimination is still in existence today. This is because there are numerous personal stories and policies still trying to be put into place. For example, the Paycheck Fairness Act.
No gender wage differentials
Prohibiting retaliation for speaking about their employer’s wage practices/own wages
Allowing comparisons between employees to determine fair wages
Strengthen equal pay violations punishment
Department of Labor assists employers to collect wage-related data
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission staff to better identify and handle wage disputes.
Jenna
Whites are in charge: “Ask for person in charge, speak to a person of my own race” most of the time it is white males
Her 3 main points
While those power may recognize the disadvantages of those not in power, they do not admit of the advantages to themselves
Some of these privileges we would wish for everyone to have, others we would wish for no one to have.
The myth of meritocracy actually teaches those in power to ignore privileges.
Alana
As stated in class before, Bunch mentioned some theories as to why there is gender discrimination
Women’s rights are not the same as human rights
Men are considered to be the more political gender
Sex discrimination is less important than matters of survival
Many of these theories are still supported today and we have listed some of them as alternative positions
Sam
Although there is relatively no one who supports the wage gap and advocate for it, people often cite reasons as to why women earn less than men
The most commonly cited difference between men and women is that women have biological differences that work against them
1) Women are more family oriented and work tends to play a less important role in their lives than men
2) Women often will take maternity leave or drop out of the workforce to raise children. Which results in the increase in costs to the company that hires them- allowing them to justify the wage difference
3) Physical and emotional differences that put women at a lower position than men. As Alana mentioned before- men are seen as more power and the political gender which allows them to be put into a position of power and ultimately make more
Another belief is that the wage gap isn’t as bad as critics say that it is because of the position that men and women ultimately end up in in their careers. Men tend to aim for higher positions than women, which ends up having men earn more than women and distorts the wage gap.
This can be seen in the positions within each company
Men are more likely to be doctors while women are more likely to be nurses
Men are the managers whereas women often are secretaries
Men are usually principles where as women are teachers
Dana
Human Resource Professionals monitor total compensation for all employees, also monitor market trends to ensure competitive wages to attract and retain top talent.
The human resource position started in the early 1900’s whose main role was to ensure the safety of the mill workers. 100% of these positions were filled by women. This job entailed caretaker, benefits, and overall looking after the employees. A stereotypical role of a female back then.
The Human resource manager field is dominated by women. Over 70% are women and those 70% still only earn 80% of men’s salary in the same field.
These are still a part, although a small part, of the human resources position today.
Dana
She stated that she is not surprised at all that there is a difference in total compensation between males and females. It starts slow, females having a slower progression in salary increases compared to their male counterparts. Hard to see at first, but after several years it becomes very obvious.
The Businesses world claims to value “teamwork”, but the Rewards typically go to the “leadership” roll.
Men tend to lead with an authoritarian style, giving out tasks and managing everyone. Women tend to “facilitate” their teams. Collaborate, share ideas, and discuss the ideas and then create a plan.
Her experience has shown her that the Authoritarian style has been viewed as the strongest by an organization.
She has noticed that women can hurt each other in the business world. Females that grew up in a more traditional time (40’s-50) grew up more competitive against each other with clothes and dates. She has personally seen women that have risen above other women, be shown less respect by other women. This lack of respect by others is seen as a negative characteristic in leadership. As a leader, if you don’t have loyal followers, you can’t be much of a leader.
Dana
Steps in the right direction:
Paycheck Fairness Act
Equal Pay Act of 1963
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)
Minimum wage
