The Wage Gap Persists
The wage gap between sexes still plagues the American workforce. In 2007, the Center for
American Progress (CAP) found that women earn 78 cents on a dollar for every dollar a man
earns in a year.28 The gender wage gap has extreme costs for women over the course of their
careers. CAP found that the average female worker loses approximately $434,000 in wages over
a 40-year period as a direct result of pay inequities.29 Out of 23 Organization for Economic Co-
operation and Development (OECD) countries, the United States has the seventh largest gender
earnings gap. The gender wage gap in the United States is 21.6%, well above the OECD average
of 18.5%.30
In 2009, women’s median weekly earnings were only 80.2% of men’s median weekly earnings.
For most women of color, the earnings gap was even larger:31
African American women earned 71 cents for every dollar earned by men in 2009.32
Hispanic and Latina women earned just 62 cents for every dollar men earned.33
Only Asian American women’s earnings were closer to parity with men’s: in 2009, they
earned 95 cents for every dollar earned by men. However, they earned 81.8% as much as
Asian American men.34
The wage gap is also more pronounced for older women: in 2009, women over 25 earned 78.7%
that of men in the same age group while women aged 1624 earned 92.6% as much as their male
peers.35
The support and opportunity for women to pursue careers in fields like science, technology,
engineering and mathematics is important for working towards pay equity. In science and
engineering, for example, women are still paid less than men but tend to earn more than similarly
educated women in other sectors of the workforce. The average starting salary for someone with
a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering, for example, was just over $59,000. By
comparison, the average starting salary for an individual with a bachelor’s degree in economics
was just under $50,000.36
Equal pay, however, remains a problem in every occupational category, even in occupations
where women considerably outnumber men. In 2009, certain professions showed a significant
gap:37
Women in professional and related occupations earned over 26% less than their male
counterparts, while women in sales and office occupations earned 20% less than similarly
employed men.
Female elementary and middle school teachers earned over 14% less than similarly
employed men, despite comprising almost 82% of the field.38
Female registered nurses earned more than 5% less than their male colleagues, although
over 90% of nurses are women.39
Female physicians and surgeons earned a whopping 36% less than their male
counterparts.
Female college and university teachers earned over 15% less than those who were male.
Female lawyers earned 25% less than male lawyers.
Women also earn less at every level of education. For full-time workers aged 25 and older in
2007:
The median annual earnings of a female high school graduate was 26% less than that of
her male counterpart.
The median annual earnings of a woman with a bachelor’s degree was almost 25% (or on
average $16,058) less than that of a similarly qualified man.
Women are more likely to complete graduate education. A woman with a master’s
degree earned 25% (or on average $19,250) less than a man with a master’s degree.
The median annual earnings for a woman with a professional degree was $65,912 while
men earned over $90,000.
A woman with a doctoral degree earned more than 22% (or on average $18,054) less than
a similarly qualified man.40
According to a recent report by the American Association of University Women, women
who attended highly selective colleges earn less than men from either highly or
moderately selective colleges and about the same as men from minimally selective
colleges.
Men and women remain segregated by college major, with women making up 79% of
education majors and men making up 82% of engineering majors. This segregation is
found in the workplace as well, where women make up 74% of the education field and
men make up 84% of the engineering and architecture fields.41
According to a study by the Center for American Progress, women at all educational
levels suffer long term affects from the wage gap. Women with less than a high school
diploma will earn on average $270,000 less over a 40 year time period than their male
counterparts. The differences are even larger as educational attainment grows. Women
with a high school degree will earn, on average, $392,000 less, women with some college
will earn $452,000 less, and women with a bachelor’s degree or higher will earn
$713,000 less than their male counterparts over a 40-year period.42
Because women are paid less when they work, they receive smaller Social Security benefits
when they retire:
Women represent 57% of all Social Security beneficiaries age 62 and older and
approximately 69% of beneficiaries age 85 and older.43
In 2006, the average Social Security income received by women 65 years and older was
$10,685, compared with $14,055 for men.44
In 2007, 47% of unmarried women receiving Social Security benefits relied on Social
Security for 90% or more of their income.45
In 2006, the average Social Security retirement benefit was 25.5% smaller for women
than men. Sixty-eight point seven percent of women receive a monthly benefit of under
$1,000 while 70% of men receive more than $1,000 per month.46
In 2007, for unmarried women age 65 and older, Social Security comprised 48% of their
total income. In contrast, Social Security benefits comprised only 37% of unmarried
elderly men’s income and only 30% of elderly couples’ income.47
In 2006, only 29.2% of women 65 and older received any form of pension or annuity
income and the median amount was $6,420. For men, 43.8% received pensions or
annuity income and the median amount was $12,000.48
The American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) estimates that unmarried women
receive approximately $8,000 less in annual retirement income than their male
counterparts. Two-thirds of this disparity is directly attributable to the wage gap and
employment segregation.50
Participation in employer-sponsored retirement plans is increasing for women in today’s
workforce. In 2007, 52.6% of women employed full-time participated in an employer-
sponsored plan compared to 51.6% of men. Women generally receive lower pensibenefits due to their relatively lower earnings.49
