Gender Pay Gap
Gender Pay Gap
April 10, 2010
For decades now, there has been an ongoing pay gap amongst men and women. Some people say it is the woman’s choice and they made it that way, others say it is plain out sexism. To this day, there is still no definitive reason why, but the gap seems to close little by little each year. Can we contribute that to women standing up for themselves more, working harder to prove their worth, or even challenging the system? T.J. Billitteri wrote the article entitled Gender pay gap touching base on the important fact which is women working and sharing the same career title as a man are making far less money (March 14, 2008).CQ Researcher, 18, 241-264.Billitteri begins his article touching base on a large lawsuit of Ledbetter vs. Goodyear tire. Ledbetter, one of few females in her supervisory position, realized she was making $559.00 a month less than the males in the same position. She received around $3 million in back pay and damages. That case stirred up a lit of press on the pay gap issue and put emphasis on bills such as the Fair Pay Act. Recognized female state officials are pushing the enforcement of Fair Pay Acts and Equal Pay Acts more and more on Congress and the Senate still to this day. Billitteri (2008) states with those in effect men and women would have equal compensation when working in the same field. A prime example is a women working as a Chief Executive makes on average 22 percent of what a male Chief Executive makes. Looking at the 2006 U.S. Census statistics it showed “the pay gap at about 77 percent of the men’s median full-time, year-round earnings.” (Billitteri 2008). In Billitteris’ article he discusses how when hiring a female the company takes into account the possibilities for maternity leave, higher insurance needs, time off to care for children, and a raised risk for sexual harassment claims. It has become apparent that women are intimidated to seek out executive or other high paying positions
April 10, 2010
For decades now, there has been an ongoing pay gap amongst men and women. Some people say it is the woman’s choice and they made it that way, others say it is plain out sexism. To this day, there is still no definitive reason why, but the gap seems to close little by little each year. Can we contribute that to women standing up for themselves more, working harder to prove their worth, or even challenging the system? T.J. Billitteri wrote the article entitled Gender pay gap touching base on the important fact which is women working and sharing the same career title as a man are making far less money (March 14, 2008).CQ Researcher, 18, 241-264.Billitteri begins his article touching base on a large lawsuit of Ledbetter vs. Goodyear tire. Ledbetter, one of few females in her supervisory position, realized she was making $559.00 a month less than the males in the same position. She received around $3 million in back pay and damages. That case stirred up a lit of press on the pay gap issue and put emphasis on bills such as the Fair Pay Act. Recognized female state officials are pushing the enforcement of Fair Pay Acts and Equal Pay Acts more and more on Congress and the Senate still to this day. Billitteri (2008) states with those in effect men and women would have equal compensation when working in the same field. A prime example is a women working as a Chief Executive makes on average 22 percent of what a male Chief Executive makes. Looking at the 2006 U.S. Census statistics it showed “the pay gap at about 77 percent of the men’s median full-time, year-round earnings.” (Billitteri 2008). In Billitteris’ article he discusses how when hiring a female the company takes into account the possibilities for maternity leave, higher insurance needs, time off to care for children, and a raised risk for sexual harassment claims. It has become apparent that women are intimidated to seek out executive or other high paying positions
References: Billitteri, T.J. (2008, March 14). Gender pay gap. CQ Researcher, 18, 241-264. Retrieved April 5, 2010, from CQ Researcher Online, http://library.cqpress.com/cqresearcher/cqresrre2008031402.