Under the Equal Pay Act of 1963 in the United States, an employer must pay male and female employees the same amount of money for equal work. Equal pay includes a worker’s yearly salary or hourly pay, in addition to overtime, benefits, and bonuses. The gender pay gap is the average difference in yearly earnings between male and female workers. Statistical research clearly indicates that women earn less money, on average, in a given year than their male counterparts. A debate emerges when feminists and gender equality advocates define the gender pay gap as being a form of systemic gender bias that results in women earning approximately 80 cents for every dollar a man earns. It can be argued that although women on average do earn less than men, this is not a form of conscious or systemic gender bias in the workplace, thus the gender pay gap as defined by the feminist movement does not exist.
The gender pay gap does exist
When defined as a form of systemic and sometimes concious gender bias, the gender pay gap does exist. Women earn less money due to a variety of societal factors, including behavioral expectations, perceptions of femininity, and their choices to become mothers.
Women are more susceptible to imposter syndrome and therefore pursue less promotions than their male counterparts.
Women are taught to be less assertive and are more susceptible to imposter syndrome, which results in them not receiving proper recognition for their work and being too nervous to pursue promotions.
Certain occupations have become gendered, so women are more likely to pursue careers that pay less than the careers men pursue.
Stereotypically feminine traits or qualities are only perceived as being valuable in certain settings, such as teaching or nursing. These positions are not as highly paid as other occupations that value stereotypically masculine traits, such as aggression and decisiveness.
Women earn less money once they decide to raise a family due to lifestyle and schedule changes that don't affect their husbands.
Because of domestic inequality, women are often the primary caretakers of their children. This results in them having less time to dedicate to their work, ultimately resulting in them making less money than their husbands, who aren't expected to stay at home with the child as often.
When defined as a form of systemic and sometimes conscious gender bias, the gender pay gap does not exist. It is illegal to pay male and female workers unequally for equal work, therefore any perceived pay gap is due to misunderstandings of statistical research or simply the choices made by women.
The singular gender pay gap as currently perceived by the majority of people within society does not exist.
There is no single gender pay gap. There are multiple different pay gaps in different industries, some of which benefit women. The public perception of the gender pay gap, as perpetuated by feminists, is misleading.
Gender pay gap statistics are being misinterpreted by people who fail to take other factors into account.
People are misreading gender pay gap statistics and assuming that substantial pay gaps within companies are due to gender discrimination, when in reality its due to female employees choosing to work in positions that pay less.
The difference in median earnings between male and female workers is due to the personal choices of women, so no gender discrimination is occurring.
Although societal pressures do exist, women are nonetheless free agents who can decide what career path to follow. Choosing to pursue an occupation that is female-dominated and does not pay as highly is personal choice and is not the result of discrimination.
