Equality Of Pay For Women Essay

As long as an American woman is putting in the same amount of hours with the same qualifications and experience in the same occupation as an American male, and yet taking home a wage that is any lower, she is not being treated fairly as an equal. Contrary to many arguments, it’s undeniable that a wage gap exists, and while there are various ideas as to the most probable cause, there is no reason why this gap should continue to go uncorrected or unchanged. Our government should take concrete steps to close the gender wage gap because it violates women’s rights and equality.

In our constitution we are all equal, but why are we not paid equally? The gender wage gap movement will result in social change because it is bringing awareness to women in the workplace getting paid lower than her male counterpart. On the other hand, many other people may argue that the gap is not because of gender, it is because men work longer hours compared to women since they have children to take care of. I believe that this movement could improve by making people more aware of the through more examples such as the Women’s U.S.A. Soccer Team wanting more pay and equal pay.

“Join the union, girls, and together say Equal Pay for Equal Work” -Susan B. Anthony. Countless women, even here in the U.S. have some sort of the wage gap. The wage gap is the difference between the median earnings of women relative to median earnings of men. In this case, women earn a significant amount less than men. Although the wage gap has gotten smaller over the years, the wage gap still has a long way to go. Women deserve better than just minimum earnings. Full time, working women should obtain the best promotions and benefits. Women that work just as tough and have the equivalent qualifications as men do still earn less, and that is just unacceptable. The wage gap should be abolished on behalf of women of color and their struggle, equal pay is a global problem, equal pay benefits employers and workers, and the wage gap accumulates over time.

According to statistics, there are disparities with pay in the workplace. Men are paid more in wages, comprehensive packages, and benefits than women who performed the same job responsibilities and roles in the workplace. The big question is why are women being unvalued? Since, this is a common practice in the workplace, is this fair to both genders and is this the most favorable outcome for the greatest number affected by this business practice? The Equal Pay Act of 1963 was passed to eliminate this type of discrimination based on sex with paying wages to employees, in such establishment at a rate less than the rate at which pays, wages to employees of the opposite sex for equal work on jobs the performance of which requires equal skill, effort, and responsibility, and which are performed under similar working conditions.

One problem that Americans are facing is the inequality between men and women, whether it is in everyday life or in a professional atmosphere. One step that has been taken toward equality was introduced with the Equal Pay Act of 1963, signed by President John F. Kennedy. This law was the first affecting the amount of job opportunities available for women and allowing them to work in traditionally male dominated fields. On the outside, this would sound like a solution where nothing could possibly go wrong, but it is not.

In the 21st Century the number of women enrolling in higher education institutions is surpassing the numbers of men enrolled. The graduation rates of women from high school and higher education are most often higher than for men. The number of women graduates from most professional occupations, including higher paying medicine, law and business, will exceed the number of men graduates in the near future. In numerous occupational areas with a majority of women graduates, salaries already surpass salaries in occupational areas with a majority of men graduates.

The gender wage inequality topic is one that has quietly laid in Americas closet of problems for decades. A female worker in Louisiana makes on average an alarming sixty-six cents compared to the dollar a man makes in twenty sixteen. When a father comes home after a forty-hour long work week making fifteen dollars an hour, he will open up a paycheck to six hundred dollars. When a mother comes home after working the same hours as the father, she will prepare dinner, change your diaper, lay you down to sleep. The only difference is her paycheck reads three hundred ninety-six dollars. It is only getting more challenging for females in today’s society as well. A defining term in the last two decades pertaining to gender wage gap inequality is the glass elevator effect. More men are choosing female dominated jobs such as nursing, teaching etc. While females slowly try to advance by increasing their salaries and rise up to higher paying and important positions, men seem to effortless glide their way to the top by an invisible escalator. This is called the glass elevator effect (Forbes). In America, this problem may go unnoticed, it is an issue dealing with cultural sexism. The broader impact of this is generations of women doing their best to advance in society but somehow constantly being beat. The specific claim of this topic is to bring justice and equality to women across in

If the gender pay gap was closed more women would be in higher job positions and this would bring a better work environment. The European Commission has already thought on what pay equity can bring to the work environment. According to the European Commission, “introducing a gender perspective can help companies make the best of human resources and improve productivity and competitiveness(European Commission).” Pay equity can bring in the best of the best of potential employees. When going in for an interview a woman's mind can be better focused on their skills and abilities and what they can bring to the table. Rather than going in and thinking if they get the job what they will be paid and if it will be less than if a man were to work in the same position. With a positive work environment and confident employees this benefits the employer by creating easy going relationships and improvement of productivity. Closing the gender pay gap not only can benefit employers and employees but the economy as

Both the United States and European Union are very progressive and dominant economic and political bodies. Both the United States and European Union are leaders in global affairs, and set a standard for many countries to follow. Both the United States and European Union have strived to fight the gender pay gap. However, both the United States and European Union have yet to completely close their gender pay gap. The benefits gained by closing the gender pay gap boil down to the fact that such equality would create a more equal society. As well as equality between men and women, closing the gap would help reduce the risk of women going into poverty and an overall increase in women lifetime earnings. Creating an environment of equality between men and women would speak volumes in terms of economic growth, and overall well-being of both men women alike. Both the United States and European Union has made substantial efforts in closing the gender pay gap. Yet between the two, one has done a better job towards meeting such a desired and long-term goal and has gained some of the possible benefits acquired from closing the gender pay gap.

A study conducted by the Institute of Political Studies of women shows that income inequality by gender is inherent in virtually all common professions, but a leader in this area is the real estate sector. In 2011, a female real estate agents earn on average $ 728 a week, compared with $ 1,201 for men, or in other words a total of 61 cents a 'male dollar. " In the financial management situation is not much better: $ 991 with respect to the $ 1504 for men, equivalent to 65.9%. A study conducted by analysts Bloomberg, argues that the opportunity to receive an equal footing with men, there are only women in low-paying areas, especially related to the care of other people (nurses, nannies) - only here on average women earn more: for $ 1.02 against the dollar man. Obviously women eager to equality, we have to make a choice: to settle for low wages, but to be on a par with their male colleagues, or receive much more, but know that a colleague with similar functions of the opposite sex for the same work receives more than you.

People across the world have very different and diverse opinions about whether or not men and women are equal, and if they should she treated as such. It is baffling that people still debate whether some human beings are worth more than others, but our world is fighting against inequality. In 1963 the Equal Pay Act was passed, stating that "men and women [must] be given equal pay for equal work in the same establishment." (Facts About Equal Pay and Compensation Discrimination). This is not the only law that has been passed since that strives to promote and achieve gender equality in the workplace, but despite the efforts of these laws, in America, we still have a gender wage gap of about 80 cents, and continue to be paid less in almost every employment field (Pay Equity & Discrimination). The United States is not the only country where there is a significant wage gap. A somewhat recent study in Canada shows that Canadian citizens are also plagued by the same inequality in the workplace as American women. The study analyzes the wages of gay men, lesbians and heterosexual women compared to heterosexual men, as well as lesbians compared to heterosexual women. The study showed that the greatest gap was between heterosexual men and heterosexual women, where the women made a whopping 26.21% less than the men. Lesbians made 8.97% less than heterosexual men, but 8.22% more than heterosexual women. Gay men faced the smallest decrease is wages but still made 4.97% less than

In conclusion it has been proven that inequality still exists within companies. If women want to be paid based off their skills and not their gender, they need to become aware of the fact that this problem is still around and fight to get rid of it. Carol Hymowitz’s article reflects on the need to make a change in businesses around the world to offer diversity and equality. The change has to start with women coming together and taking a stand against discrimination. With constant change and growth within our country, there is no reason

     “April third has been declared by Feminist and labor groups as ‘Equal Pay Day’ because it supposedly takes 93 calendar days for women’s wages to catch up to men’s.” 3 Many people believe that sex discrimination is the main reason for the pay gap. However, several factors must be taken into consideration.

In the 1800’s a women was suppose to have four things Piety, Purity, submissiveness, and domesticity. These principles shaped the “Cult of True Womanhood” an idea that women were to be seen but not heard. Women had no say when it came to politics, they couldn’t own property, they were not allowed to do many jobs, and they couldn’t even speak in front of men. They had the duty to be a mother and raise their children but even thought they had this responsibility it was the husband who had the complete control and guardianship of the children. Because of these ideas it was very difficult for change to happen. When women started to receive more education they began to ask questions about why they were being denied these rights, which began the

Equality between Women and Men, or Gender Equality, means equality of rights and freedoms. For equal opportunities for participation, recognition and appreciation of women and men, In all areas of society, political, economic, labor, personal and family.