The issue of equal pay for equal work performed by women; is a political hot button in the 2016 presidential campaign. So much so that the stump speeches, for both former secretary of state Hillary Clinton, and senator, Bernie Sanders, always include this issue. Since the 1960s, congress and many researchers have tested this theory. In order to affirm the validity of this message, we will perform a five-step hypothesis test. In the book, “Statistical Techniques in Business & Economics,” authors D. Lind, W. Marchal & S. Wathen (2012), describe how to conduct this test of hypothesis. We seek to determine if two sampled populations, females and males, have the same mean (arithmetic average) wages. The process begins with only the raw data from a 2005 wages database. As a result, the authors further explain: “The method described does not require that we know the standard deviations of the populations (2012).” For that reason, we assume the sampled populations are equal, but, the standard deviations are unknown. Then, we use the t-test as the test statistic, with 30 degrees of freedom.
Problem Statement In an online article entitled “The Simple Truth About the Gender Pay Gap”, published on the AAUW website, author Catherine Hill, PhD, had this to say: “Did you know that in 2014, women working full time in the United States typically were paid just 79 percent of what men were paid, a gap of 21 percent? The gap has narrowed since the 1970s, due largely to women’s
After years of Civil Rights Movements and Pay Equity Acts, as of 2014, women still only make 79 cents to a man 's every dollar. Although the wage gap has shrunk since the 1970’s, progress has recently stalled and chances of it vanishing on its own is unlikely. The gains that American women have made towards labor market experience and skills is tremendous. In fact, women account for 47% of labor workforce and 49.3% of American jobs. But despite of women’s strides, a gender pay gap still exists. Experts suggest that it will take 100 years to close the gap at the rate employers and legislators are working to create solutions. But by allowing women to work in higher paying positions and by proposing and updating pay equity laws, the gender gap can finally be diminished.
The gender pay gap is the difference between male and female earnings averaged in percentages. This difference in pay due to gender seems like it would be an obsolete practice in the twenty-first century, but it is real and is affecting millions of women and households in the country. In 2014, women working full time in the United States were paid 79 percent on average of what men were being paid, which is a gap of approximately 21 percent. This means that in the United States, females earned 94 cents on average to every dollar earned by males. According to one study by the Department of Labor’s Chief Economist, a typical 25-year-old woman working full time would earn $5,000 less over the course of her working career than a typical 25-year old man working in the same career. The reason why this pay gap exists does expand into other factors such as education, experience, the work being performed, qualifications, age, and ethnicity which are taken into account. The studies being conducted on the pay gap has economists verifying that discrimination is the best overall explanation and factor of the difference in pay between males and females.
Women have made significant strides in society, proving themselves to be as capable as men in the workforce. However, while women are making equal contributions, men and women are not earning equal wages. Even though the Equal Pay Act was established in 1963, women continue to earn lower wages than men over half a century later. This inequality not only affects women as individuals but has a detrimental effect on the national economy. The gender wage gap in the United States should end because it is unjust; correcting it would have social and economic benefits for the U.S.
The gender pay gap is a problem nationwide in the United States. It is a phenomenon that affects women of all education levels, ages, and races. Although it varies in a state-by-state basis, the pay gap is prevalent in all states (Miller, 2017). The issue is also occupation-wide, meaning that nearly every occupation will have a gender gap (Miller, 2017). Statistics from The Simple Truth About the Gender Pay Gap have shown that while an increase in education help women earn more, it does not eliminate the problem all together or close the gap (Miller, 2017). As of recent statistics, women are paid approximately 80 cents for every dollar a man makes, however, the gap is worse for women of color, especially, when compared to the salary of that of white men; African American women earn 63% of the salary that white men earn, Native American women earn 58%, and the largest gap is for Latina women, who earn only 54% (Miller, 2017).
The gender pay gap in the United States forms a slightly mixed feeling. On one hand, after years of opposition to the earnings of women compared to men. There has been a large increase in women's earnings since the 1970s. The gender pay gap in the United States is measured through the female to male average yearly earnings for a full-time, year-round worker. Previously, a woman earned 77 cents for every dollar that a male gets. Since 1980, the gap has narrowed by 16.8 cents, improving from 60.2 cents to 77 cents, as stated by the Institute for Women’s Policy. The current pay gap between female and male is 82 cent for every one dollar. This growth is significant because it opposes the relative stability of the earlier incomes of a woman in the
It has been more than fifty years since the Equal Pay Act of 1963 was enacted, yet gender pay gap still exists today. According to National Women’s Law Center, women are paid only 80 cent for every dollar their male counterpart are paid. According to American Association of University Women, the total estimated loss of earnings for women compared to men over the course of 45 years are $700,000 for a high school graduate, $1.2 million for a college graduate, and $2 million for a professional school graduate. Although there are many factors that are responsible for gender pay gap, 40% of the pay gap is due to discrimination according to a report by the Joint Economic Committee Democratic Staff. By discriminating women, we, as a society, are telling
In the article, Clinton vs. Trump: Equal Pay for Equal Work, Hilary Clinton argues that the issue of the gender pay gap is a major problem in this country and she plans on tackling these problems surrounding the pay gap that affects these women. The views of Clinton’s unequal pay gap display other wide dimensions relating to: women’s equality in our society and how the pay gap not only targets certain women but women who are mothers, and women of color. Notably, most Americans are unaware about the issue of unequal pay gap between men and women, and consequently this leads to inequality towards women in the workplace. I strongly stress the controversial issue to enforce and fight inequality of working mothers, color of women, and women have been facing in the workplace with the issue of unequal pay between and how men are viewed as more competent in the workplace.
The most well-known limit placed upon women in a work setting is the wage gap, or the difference between a man’s salary and a woman’s salary. Authors dive into the subject of the current wage gap because of its presence in modern society, and one author who does speak out about the topic is Caroline Fredrickson. Fredrickson, president of the American Constitution Society for Law and Policy, writes in her book Under the Bus: How Working Women Are Being Run Over about how the gap between a man and woman’s salaries does exist in today’s progressive society. To argue her case, Fredrickson reveals, “In the past decade, women have not made any progress at all, with the wage gap overall remaining stubbornly at 77 percent…” (44). This gap of seventy seven percent implies that the majority of women are paid only seventy seven percent of what a man is paid in any given position.
A current political issue in the United States is unequal payment based on the sex of the one who is employed. Rick McKee uses he editorial cartoon, “Equal Pay,” to indirectly characterize our current president, and create some irony around the whole topic of inequality in paychecks. McKee intends to reach all possible viewers/voters to make the president appear to have some hypocrisy to create some irony surrounding the president and his people-pleasing executive orders. The moral points in this piece of artwork are: if someone wants others to change they should change first, one cannot blame their mistakes on someone else, and be humble. The main purposes of this satirical cartoon is to criticize the current president’s lack of knowledge of the issue of unequal pay going on even with those that work for him, and his attitude of a hypocrite to blame what he is in charge of on other people.
Since the 1970’s there have been surveys showing there is a pay gap between men and women. This gap seems to have been decreasing since then but it is still there. There have been social movements over the pay gap issue stating that “in the 1970s was 59 cents on the dollar and a more recent crusade for pay
The United States Women’s National soccer team overpowered Columbia on April 6, 2016. The United States Women’s National team ended up beating Columbia 7-0 in East Hartford Connecticut. The Pratt and Whitney Stadium was filled with 21,792 chilled fans cheering and chanting for equal pay. There were many signs saying “Equal Play=Equal Pay,” and “Grass Only,” a reference to the artificial turf fields that the women’s team has been bothered about for many years now. After the game, The New York Times interviewed with Becky Sauerbrunn, a defender on the team. She said, “We have the best fans in the world” and “To support us like that, we’re really appreciative.” I was actually at the game on April sixth and it was a very moving game. When the players
I agree that today’s youth are pursing reform for equal pay/equal rights for women, renewable energy, college tuition, and healthcare reform. Yes, equal pay is a tough topic, but it should not be and does not have to be. For instance, Johnny and Susy have identical credentials and the same job title yet Susy’s salary is twenty percent less than Johnny’s salary. Why should Susy receive less pay while she has the same credentials and job duties as Johnny? Salary should be based on skills alone and not based on gender. I believe the fair and right thing to do is to take gender out of the equation.
The American Association University of Women reports that the average full time workingwoman receives just 80% the salary of a man. In 1960, women made just 60% of what men made, an upward trend that can be explained “largely by women’s progress in education and workforce participation and to men’s wages rising at a slower rate”, but a trend that is not yet equal (p. 4). Hill recognizes that the choices of men and women are not always the same, whether it be in college major, or job choice, however she concludes that women experience pay gaps in virtually all levels of education and lines of work. She suggests that continuing to increase the integration of women in predominately male dominated work will help the pay gap, however, she believes that alone won’t be enough to ensure equal pay for women.
Furthermore, the ERA will produce everyone to have an equal pay. No matter the gender or race. “Tracy Rexroat starting salary was more than $17,000 lower than her male peers’ when she was hired in 2007 and remained well below theirs in 2010,” it says in Why We Need an Equal Rights Amendment. This shows an example of how a woman would be paid to a man. Shouldn’t they get the same pay? The ERA can make that happen. “Despite laws guaranteeing equal pay for equal work, women on average still are paid only 78 cents on the dollar that men are paid – even less for African American women and Latinas,” it says in the same article. Poor or rich, women are being put into a lower paying job so they don’t receive plenty of money. Giving men a higher
In a recent article published in Adweek, the public relations executive described her strategy for coping with the gender pay gap and her goal of helping other women do the same. It’s no news to most people that women earn just 79% of what men earn. But according to broadly accepted research, if the United States continues to correct the gender pay gap at its current rate, the country will not reach actual