kygirl.....you are right, I am not a woman. To be honest, I'm not really going to get into this argument, as you said, I don't know it as well as most do.

 

I do have a question. I mean, there are certainly laws that already exist to prevent discrimination. Speaking about what happened to you in the 1980's- is there anything that you could have done?

kygirl.....you are right, I am not a woman. To be honest, I'm not really going to get into this argument, as you said, I don't know it as well as most do.

 

I do have a question. I mean, there are certainly laws that already exist to prevent discrimination. Speaking about what happened to you in the 1980's- is there anything that you could have done?

 

Only if she had known and filed suit within 18 (weeks?) of recieving the FIRST disparate paycheck.

In the 1960s, the same argument was used to oppose the passage of the Civil Rights Act. In the 1980s, it resurfaced again to fight the Americans with Disabilities Act. As a result of these two historic pieces of legislation, our workforce is more diverse. If workers have assurances that the pay system is fair, they will not need to seek remedies under the law.

 

That is certainly a good thing. The downside to it is the huge number of meritless lawsuits now brought in the name of these acts. I wish there were some way to weed them out so the actions with merit could proceed at a quicker pace.

To Kygirl, KyTMCNcc, RM, TB&G.....I hope you don't view me as misogynistic- but I simply am not buying this whole thing.

 

I really believe that the gap between male and female pay can be explained largely by completely understandable statistics.

 

For example, Per the Bureau of Labor Statistics:

 

Men accounted for 64 percent of injuries and illnesses and had an incidence rate of 134 per 10,000 workers, 22 percent higher than the rate for women (105 per 10,000 workers). Men typically work in jobs and industries that have higher rates than women.

 

 

I've also seen that ~95% of a deaths on the job are male. Also, women take time off to care for children- which, while unfortunate, certainly shows up a little in compensation.

 

I've also seen that a lot of the wage gap exists primarily in older workers (for obvious reasons) which means that many things that have been done are working well.

 

There is more that I will get back to later. Sorry that I can not right now.

 

To the women taking time off to care for children, I'm not sure what that encompasses.

 

If:

 

A) You mean that women take extended maternity leave, there is a legal right for paternity leave to be extended now as well.

 

B) You mean that women take sick days to care for sick children, men have the same issue.

 

C) You mean that women stop their careers to raise thier young children, I think that you'd find few women in lower wage categories take time off from their jobs to raise children.

 

D) I always hate the "women take time to care for the kids" argument with regard to the disparity in wages. That only is applicable if there is a 2 parent family. There are millions of single-moms out there with no such luxury as a 2nd income. Many don't even take a full 6 weeks off after the birth of a baby before returning to work.

To the women taking time off to care for children, I'm not sure what that encompasses.

 

If:

 

A) You mean that women take extended maternity leave, there is a legal right for paternity leave to be extended now as well.

 

B) You mean that women take sick days to care for sick children, men have the same issue.

 

C) You mean that women stop their careers to raise thier young children, I think that you'd find few women in lower wage categories take time off from their jobs to raise children.

 

D) I always hate the "women take time to care for the kids" argument with regard to the disparity in wages. That only is applicable if there is a 2 parent family. There are millions of single-moms out there with no such luxury as a 2nd income. Many don't even take a full 6 weeks off after the birth of a baby before returning to work.

Since I am by no means an expert on this issue, I hope you don't become insulted if I am say something incorrect here. Tell me if I am wrong.

 

First of all, if I am not mistaken, isn't the disparity in wages normally larger in executive positions (as well as the whole "glass ceiling" issue)? So, while C) and D) are correct, isn't the wage gap primarily in middle- and higher-income jobs? (Keep in mind that I may very well be wrong here).

 

As for A) and B), yes, paternity leaves and sick days for men exist as well, but typically it is the women who do those. (Keep in mind that I am NOT criticizing women AT ALL- that is just the way these things work out). While I am 100% in favor of those rights for parents, the fact that it does result in less hours worked by women would therefore equate to a wage gap. Now, is getting paid less due to working less hours discriminatory? No, that is how business works.

 

I really hope to not come off as misogynistic here. It is just that, from what I've always understood, a lot of the wage gap can be explained by males getting more overtime, danger on the job, and other factors having nothing to do with discrimination. I've always thought the disparity in women in executive positions was more telling then the wage gap.