In 2009, the Consad Research Corporation conducted a comprehensive study on the gender wage gap for the Department of Labor, and produced a 95-page report titled “An Analysis of the Reasons for the Disparity in Wages Between Men and Women.” This is from the report’s foreword:
There are observable differences in the attributes of men and women that account for most of the gender wage gap. These variables include:
1. A greater percentage of women than men tend to work part-time.
2. A greater percentage of women than men tend to leave the labor force for child birth, child care and elder care.
3. Women, especially working mothers, tend to value “family friendly” workplace policies more than men.
4. Women may value non-wage benefits more than men do, and as a result prefer to take a greater portion of their compensation in the form of health insurance and other fringe benefits.
There are observable differences in the attributes of men and women that account for most of the gender wage gap. These variables include:
1. A greater percentage of women than men tend to work part-time.
2. A greater percentage of women than men tend to leave the labor force for child birth, child care and elder care.
3. Women, especially working mothers, tend to value “family friendly” workplace policies more than men.
4. Women may value non-wage benefits more than men do, and as a result prefer to take a greater portion of their compensation in the form of health insurance and other fringe benefits.
The study concludes that “the differences in the compensation of men and women are the result of a multitude of factors and that the raw wage gap should not be used as the basis to justify corrective action. Indeed, there may be nothing to correct. The differences in raw wages may be almost entirely the result of the individual choices being made by both male and female workers.”
And yet the Senate will vote this week on “The Paycheck Fairness Act,” which according to the American Association of University Women is a critical piece of legislation that “can help create a climate where pay discrimination is not tolerated, and give the new administration the enforcement tools it needs to make real progress on pay equity.”
Read more here at The Enterprise Blog about how The Paycheck Fairness Act Will Fatten Paychecks for Trial Lawyers, Not Women.
Update: The Paycheck Fairness Act failed in the Senate today - 60 votes were needed to move the bill forward and the supporters had only 58 votes.
Update: The Paycheck Fairness Act failed in the Senate today - 60 votes were needed to move the bill forward and the supporters had only 58 votes.
