The Gender Pay Gap Will Always Be With Us
YES, yes, we know, women earn on average 18% less than men. Or 12 %, 38%, even 1% more, depending upon who you believe and which number they’re lying about. The first is the mean average between men and women working full time: but we should use mean averages here (you shouldn’t when there’s a lower bound but no upper as with wages) we should use median which is the second.
The third is the likes of Harriet Harman lying through their teeth (it compares female part time wages with male full time) and the last is one that is true in two ways. Part time women earn 1% more than part time men and never married, no children women in their 40s and above earn 1% more than their male compatriots.
Which gives us the lead in to this piece which, at great length, points out that there will always be a general gender pay gap:
Actually, there is no evidence for either of these propositions. If women work fewer hours than men do, it appears to be because they want it that way. About two-thirds of the part-time workforce in the United States is female. According to a 2007 Pew Research survey, only 21 percent of working mothers with minor children want to be in the office full-time. Sixty percent say that they would prefer to work part-time, and 19 percent would like to give up their jobs altogether. For working fathers, the numbers are reversed: 72 percent want to work full-time and 12 percent part-time.
If you take time out of the workforce to have and to raise children then your wages will be lower than the wages of those who don’t take that time out.
And it appears that the majority of women who do have children would like to be the ones who take the time out to raise the little snot bags. Until that changes there’s going to be a gender pay gap and nothing, not equal pay audits, not more maternity or paternity leave, nothing, is going to change that.
Posted: 8th, August 2011 | In: Money Comment | TrackBack | Permalink
