A Lopsided Fortune Scale: Annotated Bibliography of the Gender Wage Gap
Fixing a societal mentality can be difficult to change. Therefore, narrowing the gender wage gap can be quite challenging to achieve. When topics, such as the benefits men have over women, are mentioned, gender discrimination fills the minds of the population. This occurs because people take into consideration the fact that the gender wage gap occurs in every state, happens in nearly every occupation, affects all levels of education and race, and grows with age. As of today, women make up 47 percent of workers, they receive more college and advanced degrees than men, yet on average, still make less than men do (Lukas). Although women can get just as much of an education …show more content…
She gives three common assumptions people have about the gap: women are paid less for the same amount of work, women are disheartened to aim for higher-paying occupations, and gender discrimination hinders women in all fields. Then, she goes on to argue that the so-called existence of the gap is based on inaccurate information because it puts together men and women working in the same profession, but working different amount of hours. Also, she notes that women tend to go into careers that help people, such as nursing or teaching, while men go for more rigorous, physical work, like engineering or construction. She justifies her argument even more by saying that men take up higher positions because they do not care for leisure time nor strive to work for fewer hours. Unlike women, who typically like to have flexible hours in case of emergency matters and personal time that has no relation to work. She states that women have a harder time balancing their work and personal lives because of attachment and motherly responsibilities even though they may have executive credentials. Furchtgott-Roth suggests that if the Department of Labor really wants to capture accurate wage results, they need to compare men and women of the same educational achievements, in the same position, and at the same corporation. She successfully provides information and validates her reasoning on why the gender wage gap is only …show more content…
She claims that statistics given by the Department of Labor are simply median wages that full-time men and women receive. She goes on to state that the information provided by the government does not take into consideration the personal factors each employee goes through to get to the position they occupy, such as the number of hours worked or their years of experience. Lukas continually talks about the choices women make in order to obtain careers that provide them conditions, hours, and an environment that makes their job more comfortable, flexible, and to their own personal liking. Additionally, she explains that men tend to tolerate jobs that are more dangerous and require physical labor or overnight shifts, which in turn cause for higher pay. Furthermore, Lukas makes a point about the Paycheck Fairness Act continuously going through Congress, yet fails to actually make a difference in narrowing the gap simply because strictly enforcing the law would cause too much of a burden for employers if employees file for gender discrimination. She gives valid information as to why the gender wage gap does not
Fixing a societal mentality can be difficult to change. Therefore, narrowing the gender wage gap can be quite challenging to achieve. When topics, such as the benefits men have over women, are mentioned, gender discrimination fills the minds of the population. This occurs because people take into consideration the fact that the gender wage gap occurs in every state, happens in nearly every occupation, affects all levels of education and race, and grows with age. As of today, women make up 47 percent of workers, they receive more college and advanced degrees than men, yet on average, still make less than men do (Lukas). Although women can get just as much of an education …show more content…
She gives three common assumptions people have about the gap: women are paid less for the same amount of work, women are disheartened to aim for higher-paying occupations, and gender discrimination hinders women in all fields. Then, she goes on to argue that the so-called existence of the gap is based on inaccurate information because it puts together men and women working in the same profession, but working different amount of hours. Also, she notes that women tend to go into careers that help people, such as nursing or teaching, while men go for more rigorous, physical work, like engineering or construction. She justifies her argument even more by saying that men take up higher positions because they do not care for leisure time nor strive to work for fewer hours. Unlike women, who typically like to have flexible hours in case of emergency matters and personal time that has no relation to work. She states that women have a harder time balancing their work and personal lives because of attachment and motherly responsibilities even though they may have executive credentials. Furchtgott-Roth suggests that if the Department of Labor really wants to capture accurate wage results, they need to compare men and women of the same educational achievements, in the same position, and at the same corporation. She successfully provides information and validates her reasoning on why the gender wage gap is only …show more content…
She claims that statistics given by the Department of Labor are simply median wages that full-time men and women receive. She goes on to state that the information provided by the government does not take into consideration the personal factors each employee goes through to get to the position they occupy, such as the number of hours worked or their years of experience. Lukas continually talks about the choices women make in order to obtain careers that provide them conditions, hours, and an environment that makes their job more comfortable, flexible, and to their own personal liking. Additionally, she explains that men tend to tolerate jobs that are more dangerous and require physical labor or overnight shifts, which in turn cause for higher pay. Furthermore, Lukas makes a point about the Paycheck Fairness Act continuously going through Congress, yet fails to actually make a difference in narrowing the gap simply because strictly enforcing the law would cause too much of a burden for employers if employees file for gender discrimination. She gives valid information as to why the gender wage gap does not