Equal Pay

Our society prides itself on being a nation in which everyone is free and has equal rights. We are a nation that allows people who have nothing to work their way up in the world and make something of themselves. Yet, that only seems to work to a certain extent for some. Recent studies by PayScale show that women are still paid less than men in the same occupation. Although gaps have significantly decreased over the years, especially in lower paying jobs, there is still some concern about equal pay. A study conducted by PayScale shows that once income reaches a hundred thousand dollars or more, the gap between women and men’s pay increases. It is true that these higher paying jobs are commonly dominated by men, but women who do take these positions are paid lower than their male counterparts. Throughout history women have constantly been fighting for equal rights. They made progress by winning the right to vote in 1920 and were granted nondiscrimination in the workforce, education, etc. in the Civil Rights Act of 1964. It is true that all this progress has been made, but you would think in this time and age there wouldn’t be a need to fight for equal pay. This study by PayScale does show that when people are evaluated by actual measureable work, such as an electrician or engineer, women are usually paid equally as men. However, when a job is based on subjective performance qualities, women tend to be paid less. Wage differences are a lot better now than they were forty years ago, but how much longer will women have to wait until they have equality across the entire board?
http://economix.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/11/16/the-gender-pay-gap-persists-especially-for-the-rich/?hp