What Is Gender Inequality Essay

Gender equality is something that has been a problem through the ages. Susan B. Anthony and many others fought for the right to vote which was granted in 1920. In 1963, President John F. Kennedy signed the Equal Pay Act into law stating that no employer can discriminate based on gender. The American Association of University Women published a graph on Women’s Median Annual Earnings as a Percentage of Men’s Median Annual Earnings for Full-time, Year-round Workers, 1974-2014 and it shows that in 1974, women were paid 59% of what men were paid. The graph shows the improvements over the years and that in 2014, women were paid 79% of what men were paid. The gap has not budged since 2014. The gender pay gap has improved over the years, but it will not close until new legislation passes.

On June 10th, 1963, John F. Kennedy signed the Equal Pay Act, which prohibits wage discrimination based solely on gender. Despite the passing of this bill, women today are still not earning equal pay for equal work. Currently, the Equal Pay Act of 1963 states that an employer in any business cannot discriminate between employees based on gender by paying wages less than an employee of the opposite sex. There are many causes of the gender pay disparity, many can be explained away by level of education, experience, and job tenure. It is the job of a human

With the majority of law based rights already having been granted to women, more focus will be put on equalizing the individual perception of gender. Although it isn’t legal to discriminate against women for the amount of work they do, or to give better jobs to men, more women are currently and will continue to push for these thoughts to cease to exist at all. As of 1963, the Equal Pay Act requires that men and women doing equal work must receive equal pay (Cunnea 9). With men and women receiving equal pay for the same work, the only things that should end up mattering for employment other than the usual experience, qualifications, and reviews of past management are an individual person’s work ethic and

The extensive studies conducted over the past 50 years on gender based wage gap show that even though the gap has narrowed over the years, it still irrefutably exists. The laws such as The Equal Pay Act of 1963, which prohibit gender based wage discrimination, and The Civil Rights Act, helped reduce the wage gap over the years but did not help eradicate it. Numerous studies and scholarly research continue to show the differences in the earnings of men and women, for equal work. Figure 1 shows the wage discrimination from the 1960s to the year 2015.

For several decades, gender inequality in the workplace has been a problematic topic for discussion. In terms of higher management and pay, some may agree to disagree that women are getting the shorter end of the stick. There is a significant difference in the salary and positions women are obtaining in large companies or corporations. Does that stir up the question, what is it that men are doing better than women? Or are women lacking certain qualities required to achieve these certain rights and opportunities? The preference towards a certain sex is the primary cause of gender discrimination, however, it is important that the theories of each party are understood and why it is present in the workplace today.

In 2014, female full-time workers made only 79 cents for every dollar earned by men, a gender wage gap of 21% according to IWPR Org or Institute for Women’s Policy Research. There is no debate that in the past women have been discriminated against when it came to compensation and wages in the workforce which led to the enactment of the Equal Pay Act of 1963. This a federal law signed by John F Kennedy attempting to amend wage disparity based on sex, under this law, it is still illegal for employers to discriminate wages by sex for the same amount of work, which requires equal skill, effort, and responsibility and are performed under similar working conditions with the exception of seniority system, merit system, or based on quantity or quality of production. With all these laws and statistics, the raw differences between the gender wage gap can be attributed to the differences in choices made by an individual.

Women in the workforce still face issues regarding gender wage gap (Equal Pay Day: Are Women Surging or Stalling?, 2018). Even though there has been progress surrounding awareness of these issues, the wage gap between women and men is still very prevalent. Here in the United States, we have enacted a law called the Equal Pay Act that requires employers to pay man and women same wage for the same work (CARD, CARDOSO & KLINE, 2016). Beyond the Equal Pay Act, employers are prohibited from practicing discrimination on the basis of gender. If an organization overall pay their employees higher salaries relative to other organization then salaries for women tend to be more equitable. Organizational practices are also changing. Some organizations

Bias, prejudice, and discrimination are issues that are still prevalent in the world today. These issues can include: gender, race, ethnicity, or even religion. A common dilemma that the nation faces today is gender discrimination in the workplace. Women who possess the same level of competence and aptitude as men are still getting paid less in the same careers. Studies show that, “Women are paid 79 cents for every dollar paid to men” (Goldin). How can this inequality be solved? It can be easily resolved by paying men and women in the same careers equal wages.

Article 23 (2) of the Declaration of Human Rights states that: Everyone, without discrimination, has the right to equal pay for equal work. This right should be given to everyone at all times. The wage gap may be based on race, sex, ethnicity, age, sexual orientation, or other things. “As of 2012, according to US Department of Labor, the gross US gender wage gap was an estimated 23%, meaning that female workers made an average of 77 cents for every one dollar made by male workers” (Gender Wage Gap). The Equal Pay Act of 1963 outlawed the payment of different wages for the same job on the basis of race. Then, in 1964, The 1964 Civil Rights Act forbade employment discrimination based on race, ethnicity, sex, or religion. Female workers are still being paid less money, for the same job, than their male counterparts.

within Barriers and Bias. Accordingly, after giving birth, women see a 4% decrease in earnings per child. Meanwhile, men actually thrive in fatherhood, with an average 6% earnings increase.  The confidence gap, which has been a discussion for years, contributes to this divide in the workforce. This inequality contributes to the damage that is committed.

Gender inequality has been an issue since long before the 1840s, when feminists finally brought the problem to light. Most ancient cultures were societies based on gender inequality, skewed towards male-dominance. Most societies are still mostly patriarchal, in fact. Patriarchy is the root of discrimination between sexes and genders and has been for a very long time.

Throughout history, countless acts of gender inequality can be identified; the causes of these discriminating accounts can be traced back to different causes. The general morality of the inequity relies on a belief that men are superior to women; because of this idea, women have spent generations suffering under their counterparts. Also, a common expectation is that men tend to be more assertive and absolute because of their biological hormones or instinctive intellect. Another huge origin is sexual discrimination; even in the world today, many women are viewed by men as just sex objects rather than a real human being with

In today’s world it is hard to believe there is still inequality in the work place based on gender. Women have always been a part of the workforce, but as explained by Ashley Farmer (2014) women became a larger portion of the male dominated positions such as manufacturing of ammunition during the Second World War due to the fact that the male workers were drafted to serve in the armed forces. Upon returning home from the war, male workers took these positions back over and most females left the work place. When the Korean War began, female workers were once again needed to fill the manufacturing positions. President Kennedy appointed Eleanor Roosevelt to lead a team to address equal pay and opportunity for women in the workforce in 1961 (Farmer, 2014). Based on the recommendations Congress passed the Equal Pay Act of 1963. The following year Congress passed the 1964 Civil Rights Act which included Title VII that bans discrimination based on race, religion and sex.

In a society that preaches equality it is expected for equality to show in its culture and way of life. In America, despite claiming to be an equal nation, many aspects of inequality, including racial, economic, and gender inequality, can be seen. Like all types of inequality and stereotypes, the socialization process begins from infancy. Most people strive to teach equality but according to Introduction to Sociology, “Even when parents set gender equality as a goal, there may be underlying indications of inequality. For example, boys may be asked to take out the garbage and perform other tasks that require strength or toughness, while girls may be asked to fold laundry or perform duties that require neatness and care.” From things as small as this stem gender inequality. As this is true, in individual households, it exists in the country itself. Men and women are advertised as equals but the truth is that America’s attempt at an egalitarian society has yet to be achieved on a gender scale. This is the purpose for this assignment: to see if people are aware of the truth about gender inequality in this society or if they are blind to this fact and believe that complete exists within the country.

Gender inequality is undeniably outdated in today’s society, but this does not mean that it is non-existent. Through the ages, women all around the world have been mistreated and denied of basic fundamental rights. As we move forward in the 21st century, there have been several movements such as Emma Watson’s “He for She” which empower women to fight for their rights. Both India and Canada are countries which are changing to involve women in education, government and the general workforce, but the success in both countries varies. Canada is a developed nation which has been progressing on the path of gender equality for over a century, whereas India is a developing nation which is slowly moving in the same direction. The vast disparity in women’s rights in these countries can be seen by comparing the degree of education, presence in the workforce and overall respect women have in both these countries.