Equal Pay For Women And Gender Discrimination Against Women

Throughout history, women have been making lower salaries than men. In 1963 an equal pay act was passed, fast-forward 46 years later, the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay of 2009 was passed. Then in 2014, President Barack Obama signed two executive orders on equal pay. It is now 2016 and women have not yet achieved equal pay with men. Women 's average yearly salary is still less than men 's. Many have placed the blame on women 's lack of negotiation and personal choices. Such as women leaving work due to childbirth, family responsibility, and career choices. Although these do affect women 's salaries, a major factor of the pay gap is gender discrimination against women. Men have been earning higher salaries than women, with the same education, in the same position, and the same job responsibilities. Women 's choices are not the only cause of the wage gap; gender discrimination is a key factor.
In the past, women have been known to take care of the household as a stay at …show more content…
According to Betsey (2015), "Women get fewer raises and promotions partially because they negotiate less. But even when women do negotiate, they are likely to receive less than men or be penalized for violating social norms" (p. 3). Many women would rather not speak up or negotiate salary because they are afraid of challenging authority, being judged or even losing their jobs because of it. “Although many people think the outcome of a negotiation is a higher salary; negation can be viewed negatively especially coming from women.” (Gender Pay Gap, 2015, p. 5). This is unfair, because if women try to negotiate they are judged, and if women do not negotiate they take the chance of receiving much less than they deserve. As the saying goes, damned if you do, and damned if you don 't. Therefore, women decide not to speak their minds and just accept what is given to them, because, well, who wants to loose their job? Or loose a possible job