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Why are women paid less than men on average?

Why are women paid less than men on average?

  • Hiring managers are sexist

    Votes: 5 23.8%

  • Women are more likely to seek jobs in fields that don't pay as well

    Votes: 11 52.4%

  • Women work fewer hours on average

    Votes: 10 47.6%

  • Women are more likely to trade a higher salary for more flexible work terms

    Votes: 12 57.1%

  • Women have fewer years of continuous work experience on average

    Votes: 6 28.6%

  • Men are more likely to ask for a raise, and more likely to walk if they don't get one

    Votes: 4 19.0%

  • Other

    Votes: 8 38.1%
  • Total voters
    21
Kandahar

Kandahar

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My roommate and I were arguing about this today. He claims that the women are paid less than men due to sexism in business. I maintain that the pay disparity is almost entirely explicable by economic differences.

What do you think?
 
Kandahar said:
My roommate and I were arguing about this today. He claims that the women are paid less than men due to sexism in business. I maintain that the pay disparity is almost entirely explicable by economic differences.

What do you think?
Click to expand...

What do you mean by economic differences?
 
Kandahar said:
My roommate and I were arguing about this today. He claims that the women are paid less than men due to sexism in business. I maintain that the pay disparity is almost entirely explicable by economic differences.

What do you think?
Click to expand...

Women, in general, choose lower paying but more long term secure jobs.

They choose jobs with less risk in regard to wages.
 
Harry Guerrilla said:
Women, in general, choose lower paying but more long term secure jobs.

They choose jobs with less risk in regard to wages.
Click to expand...

That would explain some of the discrepancies, but certainly not all.

Jobs that are the same - jobs that have the same requirements including experience and education - there are at times, differences in pay between men and women. Women often times making less money for the same work that requires the same requirements as their male counterparts.

For those discrepancies, I have no idea why this is.

I have experienced it first hand and needless to say, left that employer and found and acquired more gainful and equal employment.
 
From what I read 2-3 weeks ago they arent anymore. I'll try to find the article. Who knows if its accurate or not.
 
TheGirlNextDoor said:
That would explain some of the discrepancies, but certainly not all.

Jobs that are the same - jobs that have the same requirements including experience and education - there are at times, differences in pay between men and women. Women often times making less money for the same work that requires the same requirements as their male counterparts.

For those discrepancies, I have no idea why this is.
Click to expand...

You also have to look what the sexes do when involved in similar jobs.
It's all the wiring in the brain.

I'll say these are generalities but they fit pretty well.

When a woman and man work in the same place and in the same job, men tend to be more aggressive in the pursuit of climbing the ladder, while women tend to be content.

Notice to all, these are generalities!
I don't want to hear how your grandma, worked her way up to CEO, blah blah blah.

TheGirlNextDoor said:
I have experienced it first hand and needless to say, left that employer and found and acquired more gainful and equal employment.
Click to expand...

I do agree that some amount of sexism exists, just not to the extent that everyone says it does.
 
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If all other things are equal, and a woman is paid less, that's sexism in action.
 
Harry Guerrilla said:
You also have to look what the sexes do when involved in similar jobs.
It's all the wiring in the brain.

I'll say these are generalities but they fit pretty well.

When a woman and man work in the same place and in the same job, men tend to be more aggressive in the pursuit of climbing the ladder, while women tend to be content.

Notice to all, these are generalities!
I don't want to hear how your grandma, worked her way up to CEO, blah blah blah.



I do agree that some amount of sexism exists, just not to the extent that everyone says it does.
Click to expand...

Maybe, but all I am stating is - that is not always the case.

I was in a position with a financial company and actually trained the incoming male counterpart. I found out later, he was paid MORE than I was and when I asked the VP why that was - I was told, "He has a family to support, whereas you do not."

At the time I was married and therefore was seen as not "having" to work. So apparently the job I did for the company and the fact that I had more seniority, more experience AND more of an education - I was paid less.

I left this company without notice or warning.

It doesn't happen ALL the time - and sometimes sexism IS in fact, alive and well.

That's all I am saying.
 
From what I've seen in over two decades of the wonderful world of work, this is how it is, when there is a discrepancy between pay, of men and women doing the same job:

Many of these working women have children. Some have a husband, some don't.
They are more likely to be more concerned about spending time with their children than men, and volunteer for less overtime, less travel, less "Extra".
They are more likely to be absent because their child is sick or because their babysitter is sick or otherwise unavailable, or to attend PTA or some other event related to the kids.
They are more likely to be hesitant about promotion, and to carefully consider how much more time would be taken away from family matters if they accepted a promotion.
In brief, they tend to work fewer hours, therefore making less money... they tend to do less "extra" and pursue promotion less aggressively, thus getting fewer raises.
This is why women tend to average a bit lower in income in the same job.

BTW, those are generalities... there are always exceptions. Nor am I dissing women for putting family first; as a single father for the past dozen years I've had to do the same, and yeah it has cost me some opportunties... but I have no beef with that, I know what my priorities are.

G.
 
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Just a question, a lot of the choices indicated psychologically aspects, and affects of women in the work place. In retrospect, I probably should have waited until I got an answer for this question to vote, but how do you either draw some of those conclusions or infer those conclusions?
 
I am a single mother now, and I certainly would hope people wouldn't make the rash consideration that women just don't have to work because the "little woman has a man at home to take care of the bills".

At two points DURING my marriage, I made more money than my husband. Yet, I was seen as less of an employee not worth the same pay for the same QUALITY and QUANTITY of work as my male counterpart because he 'has a family to support'?

**** that.

I am not the kind of person that would go around stating that women are discriminated against ALL the time, nor am I cut of the cloth that believes that men and women are equal in ALL respects. I do however, know that I am a parent raising children and I am a damn hard worker.

I expect my pay to be comensurate with my educational level and my experience. Period. I don't expect to be short changed because I have boobs and because I'm a mother. I'm not weak and don't expect handouts. I don't expect favors or special exceptions - I do expect to be treated fairly.
 
TheGirlNextDoor said:
Maybe, but all I am stating is - that is not always the case.

I was in a position with a financial company and actually trained the incoming male counterpart. I found out later, he was paid MORE than I was and when I asked the VP why that was - I was told, "He has a family to support, whereas you do not."

At the time I was married and therefore was seen as not "having" to work. So apparently the job I did for the company and the fact that I had more seniority, more experience AND more of an education - I was paid less.

I left this company without notice or warning.

It doesn't happen ALL the time - and sometimes sexism IS in fact, alive and well.

That's all I am saying.
Click to expand...

I understand, we all have our experiences.
I'm not saying some form of sexism doesn't exist.
 
this a timeless, yet simple answer. It's a Mans world, and Wimen should be in the Kitchen, makin up some nice spam samiches, and fetchin ice cold Lone Stars for the Men folk. as they are busy discussing matters of great import.:cool::2wave:
 
Men show up to work with a stick-shift and two ball bearings. Women show up with a cracked axle. :rofl
 
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/03/nyregion/03women.html

Young women in New York and several of the nation’s other largest cities who work full time have forged ahead of men in wages, according to an analysis of recent census data. The shift has occurred in New York since 2000 and even earlier in Los Angeles, Dallas and a few other cities.

...

It shows that women of all educational levels from 21 to 30 living in New York City and working full time made 117 percent of men’s wages, and even more in Dallas, 120 percent. Nationwide, that group of women made much less: 89 percent of the average full-time pay for men. Just why young women at all educational levels in New York and other big cities have fared better than their peers elsewhere is a matter of some debate. But a major reason, experts say, is that women have been graduating from college in larger numbers than men, and that many of those women seem to be gravitating toward major urban areas. In 2005, 53 percent of women in their 20s working in New York were college graduates, compared with only 38 percent of men of that age. And many of those women are not marrying right after college, leaving them freer to focus on building careers, experts said.

...

But in jobs that were once defined as male preserves — including police officer and private investigator — where gender barriers are crumbling, young men and women in New York had the same median wages: a little more than $40,000. And women in their 20s now make more than men in a wide variety of other jobs: as doctors, personnel managers, architects, economists, lawyers, stock clerks, customer service representatives, editors and reporters.
Click to expand...
 
Manc Skipper said:
If all other things are equal, and a woman is paid less, that's sexism in action.
Click to expand...


Nope.

I'd probably pay my buddie more than some chick even if they were both doing the same thing for me.....

Cronyism.
 
I'm not qualified to place blame on any one reason... however I would like to add a side note...

Engineering, as another poster pointed out, is dominated by men.

I can only assume that because many businesses strive to have a diverse workforce, women engineers would be prime candidates to get hired in the field. I feel I could guarantee that every woman in the Engineering field will get a job almost anywhere they go and get paid good money. However most women at my school are primarily in education, art, music, and fashion... which arguably pay much lower wages than engineers.

This says nothing except that the women at my school simply lean towards jobs that pay less. I'm not sure if this trend is repeated across the country.

But at least they are in a field they will hopefully enjoy
 
Kandahar said:
My roommate and I were arguing about this today. He claims that the women are paid less than men due to sexism in business. I maintain that the pay disparity is almost entirely explicable by economic differences.

What do you think?
Click to expand...

Because they are less capable, on average, than men. Plus there's that whole week out of every month that they are worthless. :shrug:
 
Goshin said:
From what I've seen in over two decades of the wonderful world of work, this is how it is, when there is a discrepancy between pay, of men and women doing the same job:

Many of these working women have children. Some have a husband, some don't.
They are more likely to be more concerned about spending time with their children than men, and volunteer for less overtime, less travel, less "Extra".
They are more likely to be absent because their child is sick or because their babysitter is sick or otherwise unavailable, or to attend PTA or some other event related to the kids.
They are more likely to be hesitant about promotion, and to carefully consider how much more time would be taken away from family matters if they accepted a promotion.
In brief, they tend to work fewer hours, therefore making less money... they tend to do less "extra" and pursue promotion less aggressively, thus getting fewer raises.
This is why women tend to average a bit lower in income in the same job.

BTW, those are generalities... there are always exceptions. Nor am I dissing women for putting family first; as a single father for the past dozen years I've had to do the same, and yeah it has cost me some opportunties... but I have no beef with that, I know what my priorities are.

G.
Click to expand...

I agree with this. Women tend to put family first and therefore don't seek out jobs that take 40 plus a week hours and don't tend to seek promotions. I think its a combination on other things as well, but I think this is the main reason.
 
Harry Guerrilla said:
Women, in general, choose lower paying but more long term secure jobs.

They choose jobs with less risk in regard to wages.
Click to expand...

Women who attend college and work in a white collar job in a major city tend to outearn their male peers.

Young women earn more than men in big U.S. cities | Reuters

I tend to believe that women's earnings are almost totally a reflection of women's career and educational choices, and that gender discrimination has very little to do with it. Women who work in male-dominated fields tend to do as well or better than their male peers, economically, if they make the same professional decisions that men do.

This finding has been duplicated in a study of 16,000 executives:

http://www.portfolio.com/views/blogs/odd-numbers/2008/10/08/among-executives-women-outearn-men
 
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