The Gender Pay Gap by Statistics

Andrew BillingsCom 307

April 16, 2015

Size and trends of the gender pay gap. Explanations for the existence of the gender

pay gap.◦ Pay level of different fields, discrimination, family

constraints. Explanations for why the gender pay gap is

shrinking.◦ Human capital theory, education of women,

higher paying positions, men’s wages falling. Perceptions of the gender pay gap.

The Gender Pay Gap

Average difference: $11,500 annually (2014).

Census Bureau: 77 cents on the dollar (2012). ◦ Contention over this figure painting a picture that

doesn’t exist. Men and women entering workforce are

closer than ever before (84 cents on the dollar).

There is still a gap left to close, but progress has been made.

Size and Trends of the Pay Gap

% of women in workplace correlates with partial closing of wage gap.

1890 (4.1% 30 cents) vs. 2015 (57%, 84 cents).

Labor force currently 47% women. Millennial women have 74% workforce

participation rate. Men less productive in labor market since

1980s.

Labor Force Trends

Science and engineering vs. administrative and office assistant jobs.

Low paying jobs typically held by women; waitering, cashiering, bartending.

Women made up 198 of 2,500 of the top paying executive jobs at S&P 500 companies.◦ CFO example (Wayne State).

Pay Level of Different Fields

Either hard to quantify statistically, or largely declining.

18% of women report discrimination. 45% of both men and women say men

generally favored in society.◦ 9% say women favored.

Only 60% of women 18-32 say they earn less than men.

Discrimination

Most evidence for this explaining the remaining gender wage gap

First establish similarity between men and women entering workplace.

Gap widens again as time spent in career progresses.

Sacrifices made by mothers explain this. Pay gap may be a symptom of a deficit in

responsibility for raising children. Does being a working parent make it harder

to advance? Women say yes, men say no.

Family Pressures

“One’s incentive to invest in training/education is directly proportional to the time one expects to work over one’s lifetime” (Polachek, 2004).

Men and women have increasingly similar perceptions of career.◦ Increased investment and ROI.◦ Need to work longer to get higher ROI.

Increased human capital investment by women correlates with shrinking of pay gap.

Human Capital Theory

Pew Research Center: Millennial women more educated than male counterparts.◦ 38% of women 25-34 hold a bachelor’s degree.◦ 31% of men in that demographic hold one. ◦ 39% of MBAs held by women, likely to increase.◦ 45% of women 18-24 enrolled in college.◦ 38% of men 18-24 enrolled in college.

Education of Women

The Guardian: 60% of entry level employees in Fortune 500 companies are women.

Law profession◦ Women make up 47% of law school students.◦ Only 31% of lawyer labor force, likely to increase.

Women Getting Higher Paying Jobs

Each wave of men less active in workforce since 1980.

Men pursuing less education and making fewer capital investments than women.

Median hourly wage for men down 4% from 1980.◦ Young men median hourly wage down 20%.

Men’s Wages

Wage gap has closed a lot in the last 4 decades, especially among professionals.◦ Why does public opinion not match this?◦ 61% men 72% women want it addressed more.◦ 73% men and 75% women saying pay is equal in

their workplace. Statistical anomalous decades of 60s and

70s. Lack of perspective.

Perception of Pay Gap

Gender wage gap does in fact exist. Explanations include differences in pay level

of various fields, discrimination, and family responsibilities.

Gap has closed greatly, for reasons including human capital investments, education, and falling male wages.

Conclusion

Percentage of men and women who attempt to negotiate a higher salary.◦ 57% of men.◦ 7% of women.

Final Statistic

M Amin. (2013, August 6). Is the human capital ‘gender gap’ a matter of experience, education or both? Retrieved from http://blogs.worldbank.org/psd/human-capital-gender-gap-matter-experience-education-or-both

Kasperkevic, J. (April 2014). Equal pay fact sheet: beyond the gender gap of ’77 cents for every dollar’. The Guardian. Retrieved from http://www.theguardian.com/money/us-money-blog/2014/apr/08/equal-pay-women-fact-sheet-salary-career

Pew Research Center. (2013, December 11). On Pay Gap, Millennial Women Near Parity – For Now. Retrieved from. http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2013/12/11/on-pay-gap-millennial-women-near-parity-for-now/

Pew Research Center [Pew Research Center]. (2014, January 9). There’s more to the story of the shrinking pay gap. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sfD7C49v5Vg

Polachek, S. (2004, April). How the Human Capital Model Explains Why the Gender Wage Gap Narrowed. IZA DP, 1102. Retrieved from http://ftp.iza.org/dp1102.pdf

References