GAO Study Finds Work Patterns Don't Explain Pay Gap Between Men, Women

From the Washington Post (AP): Nov 20 2003

GAO Study Finds Work Patterns Don't Explain Pay Gap Between Men, Women

The Associated Press
Thursday, November 20, 2003; 2:40 PM


Women's income is lower on average than that of men in part because they generally work less, leave the labor force for longer periods and tend to hold jobs that pay less, a congressional study found.

But even after adjustments are made for those factors, women still earned an average of 20.3 percent less than men in 2000, investigators said Thursday.

The General Accounting Office conducted the earnings study for Democratic Reps. Carolyn Maloney of New York and John Dingell of Michigan.

The 20 percent gap has been relatively unchanged in the past two decades. The difference was 19.6 percent in 1983.

(snip)

"After accounting for so many external factors, it seems that still, at the root of it all, men get an inherent annual bonus just for being men," Maloney said. "If this continues, the only guarantees in life will be death, taxes and the glass ceiling. We can't let that happen."

(snip)

More: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A641-2003Nov20.html

My income is lower because I hold a job that pays less than a man's. Hmmm, so I guess I can make things better by holding a job that doesn't pay less than a man's. :evilgrin: :shrug: Gotcha!!!!

And if we work "less" and leave the work force for longer periods, exactly what are we leaving to do? Spend all our money? :shrug:

Gender discrimination is alive and well, as this letter to the West Valley View, our local west-of-Phoenix weekly shows:


Women need not apply
To the editor:
In response to Jennifer Turner’s “Wal-Mart does not discriminate against women,” sure they don’t. As long as you are not a professional, experienced truck driver.
I went for a job when I lived in California and the man gave me a look as if to tell me to “get in my place woman” and straight out told me, “We don’t hire women.”
Joan Silvey
Goodyear

http://www.westvalleyview.com/WESTVALLEYVIEW/myarticles.asp?S=365&PubID=11677&P=695841


The usual way companies get around gender discrimination is to alter the "official" job description depending on who is actually doing it. Thus, if they hire a woman for a position as "payroll accountant" she will do the same things as the man they hire as "labor cost analyst." On paper, the job descriptions will be significantly different, and may even have different education and experience requirements. At the nitty gritty, however, it's the same freakin' job, but when a man does it, it pays more.

Been there, done that, more times than I care to count.


Tansy Gold

These are the most common reasons for women voluntarily leaving the work force for extended periods of time.

because women are always getting pregnant, collecting disability, then leaving the place. After all that training, etc. These guys basically said they'd only hire a woman if absolutely forced to because of this.

thing.

Paid less, promoted later, more education/experience required to qualify.

D'oh.

Do you know if any of the candidates have addressed this issue or made policy statements on it?

It ties in quite well with this thread in GD.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=739043

Relevant excerpts from policy statements that I've found for each of the Dem candidates, in alphabetical order:

Wesley Clark:

Equal economic opportunity. Opportunity starts with jobs-which is why I want to repeal Bush's tax giveaways for the wealthy and invest $100 billion in a job creation plan. But we also need to take proactive steps to ensure that women have equal opportunities in the workplace. As a start, we need to eliminate the pay gap. Until women in this country earn 100 cents on the dollar, all of us are being shortchanged.

Howard Dean:

Fight for Equality in the Workplace. Women’s paychecks must match the value of the vital jobs they perform. I will strengthen enforcement of our anti-discrimination laws, such as Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, guaranteeing equal opportunity employment and protection from discrimination in the workplace. I will use the “bully pulpit” of the presidency to encourage employers to do a better job of paying women fairly, and as President, I’ll make sure the federal government improves its equal pay and promotion record, too.

John Edwards:

Supporting Pay Equity. Edwards knows that women still earn, on average, 78 cents for every dollar earned by men. He cosponsored the Paycheck Fairness Act, which would strengthen penalties against employers who deny women equal pay for equal work.

Dick Gephardt:

Equal Pay for Equal Work Gephardt supports cementing the right to equal pay in federal law. In 1997, 1999, 2001 and 2003, Gephardt was a lead supporter of legislation to ensure that women receive equal pay for equal work. He has made this issue a national priority as part of the congressional Democratic agenda.
(HR. 2023 in 1997, HR. 541 in 1999, and HR. 781 in 2001, HR 1688 in 2003)

John Kerry:

Close the Pay Gap Women still earn, on average, only 73 cents for every dollar earned by men. John Kerry believes that we must expand opportunities for women and work to make equal pay for equal work a reality not a slogan. He would start by improving enforcement and disclosure about payment practices.

Dennis Kucinich: (Amazing, I could not find anything on his web site about this issue. There's no shortage of other position papers, though.) :shrug:


Joe Lieberman:

Standing Up for Pay Fairness. Joe Lieberman has been a leader in the fight to guarantee women the same pay for doing the same job as men. He is a co-sponsor of the Paycheck Fairness Act, which would make it harder for employers to justify discriminatory firings. Joe Lieberman also cosponsored a bill that would require the government to disseminate information and promote techniques to eliminate discriminatory wage-setting practices.

Carol Moseley-Braun:

Carol Moseley Braun has always walked the talk on issues important to women. Her 30 years in public service have been defined by forwarding legislation crucial to both women and their families. While in the Illinois State Legislature, she fought for the ERA and pledges to continue doing so until women have equal rights under the Constitution and in all things. She has a proven record of fighting for social justice for all people.

Ambassador Braun supports equal pay, a living wage, protection of the social security safety net, and an increased minimum wage. ... .

Carol Moseley Braun’s vision for women is not just about breaking the glass ceiling, but making sure that women rise from the sticky floor of pay and income in equality. ... .

Al Sharpton: Nothing on his website that I cound see, but then again, I couldn't find very much on his website, period.

--Peter

Thanks for doing that. :bounce:

Do you think perhaps the candidate's positions on this issue should be a thread. I could start it if you would like since it deals with candidates. Let me know.

I could post that as a thread in the Politics forum as a reference for others. Now that you've had a very similar idea, I think I will go ahead and do this, unless you think General Discussion or another forum would be more appropriate.

Thanks for the kind words. :D

--Peter