Gender Wage Gap Issue: Equal Pay for Equal Work

 Sheryl Sandberg once said, “We cannot change what we are not aware of, and once we are aware, we cannot help but change” (Sandberg). Equal employment opportunity is a government policy that states that employers do not discriminate against employees and job applicants. Certain characteristics include age, race, color, creed, sex, religion, and disability. The equal employment opportunities shown positively provides training, guidance, development and even job shadowing or mentoring. People regardless of gender should have equal employment opportunities. Across the world, a common obstacle that keeps occurring is typically women face this particular issue. Even though some jobs are better suited for a particular gender, they should be open to both genders at a workplace because women receiving unequal pay, unfair treatment, and being held to different standards.

Few individuals believe that certain jobs are better suited for a specific gender. One study shows, “In the United States, only 6.6% of women worked full-time in male-dominated occupations in 2017” (Catalyst). In today’s world, people perform jobs that are best suited to their abilities whereas an individual in a position of authority gets the same respect, regardless of gender. The gender stereotype displays disadvantages to women to become future leaders in the workplace. Therefore, a job should not determine if either gender is more capable of doing a particular job better than another.

In particular, women are still not receiving equal pay for equal work compared to men. As claimed, “Indeed, according to data from the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey, women on a minimum wage earn roughly 10% less per hour than men on the minimum rate” (The Gender Pay Gap Stretches To Minimum Wage Workers Too). This affects women’s spending power and their retirement security. Besides, women are well educated in their job field, which is unfair because education is pushed onto people so they have a good job with good pay. Unfortunately, being a woman in the workplace has its downfall with the wage gap that implies women lose more than $10,000 per year in their earnings. According to Lahle Wolfe a writer for The Balance Small Business, “The Equal Pay Act of 1963 made it a federal requirement that pays scales for identical work be the same regardless of whether the employee doing the labor is male or female” (Wolfe). It is clearly shown that fair pay and economic opportunities are critical challenges women face. In spite of the laws that were created to end unequal pay, there needs to be stricter laws or new ones enforced to give everyone the same opportunity in the workplace. Lastly, the pay gap is across all racial and ethnic groups, found in every state, and practically every occupation.

Most importantly, in a working environment everyone should be treated fairly, respectfully, and maturely no matter the gender or race. As provided by CNBC News, “The poll, which surveyed more than 1,000 U.S. adults, found that 52 percent of Americans say men do not treat women equally in the workplace while 61 percent of women say that their male counterparts fail to treat them as equals” (Carter). Unfair treatment at work usually deals with discrimination, such as gender, ethnic, or being pregnant. The unfair treatment is mainly towards women than men at work. Women feel degraded, humiliated, and offended. Employers expect all women to be good at multitasking because apparently, they’re better at it than men. According to a nationwide survey, “Twenty-five percent of female workers have experienced discrimination or unfair treatment in the workplace, and 17 percent said they have felt sexually harassed by a fellow employee or manager” (25% of Women Report…). For example, cutting off women as they talk in meetings. Even using gendered language to characterize an individual’s work ethic. However, this makes it harder for women to succeed at work, plus causes women not to work at particular jobs/professions.

Specifically, gender-based standards tend to be much higher for females than males in the workplace. In addition to this, “Four-in-10 survey participants said women are expected to do more than their male counterparts to prove themselves” (Staff). Some people strongly believe that women portray the role of taking care of things, while men are considered to be taking charge of a situation. Nevertheless, women still receive lower rewards for doing numerous amount of work compared to a male coworker. Clearly, men outnumber women in everything, especially in the workplace. As a clear illustration, “Women surpass men on education attainment among those employed aged 25 and over: 37.1 percent of women hold at least a bachelor’s degree compared to 34.9 percent for men” (Gender Inequality and Women…). This evidence highlights that women are less likely to be hired into entry-level jobs. Therefore, this is a negative impact on women and companies which leads to losing employees in a business. Without a doubt, work standards are higher for women, and for this reason, it is more likely to believe that gender has played a role in missing the opportunity on a promotion or raise. Considering everything, women want to be given the same opportunity, workload, and level of respect in the workplace to fully succeed in their job/job title.

Without a doubt, people regardless of gender should have equal employment opportunities, which indicates that employers should be open to both genders at a workplace because women in this case, especially, receive unequal pay, unfair treatment, and being held to different standards. First and foremost, women in the workplace receive unequal pay constantly. Secondly, women get unfair treatment at work which makes them uncomfortable at their job. The final point is women being held to much higher standards than men even if the pay does not match up. If each gender does not receive the same pay, then equal employment opportunities will never give individuals to strive in businesses. Therefore, you should start a protest with no hesitation to inform people who are not aware of this current situation people are facing on a day to day basis. Without delay we should set goals, track and report on progress, and reward success, which can increase diversity, to have equal pay, plus to ensure that hiring and promotions are fair.       

Works Cited

1. Carter, A. (2019, November 5). 52% of Americans say men don't treat women equally in the workplace, CNBC poll finds. CNBC.
2. Catalyst. (2019). Quick take: Women in male-dominated industries and occupations.
3. Economic Policy Institute. (2021). Racial and ethnic wage gaps.
4. Forbes. (2018, November 14). Why is it so hard for women to prove themselves at work? Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/ashleystahl/2018/11/14/why-is-it-so-hard-for-women-to-prove-themselves-at-work/?sh=2f702d7e2e9d
5. Forbes. (2018, September 20). The gender pay gap stretches to minimum wage workers too. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/samanthaharrington/2018/09/20/the-gender-pay-gap-stretches-to-minimum-wage-workers-too/?sh=3e6d3c6e23dc
6. Lahle Wolfe. (2021, October 28). Equal pay for women - history and timeline. The Balance Small Business.
7. Matusik, J. G. (2021, September 14). Why women still face challenges even when employers try to be family-friendly. Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2021/09/why-women-still-face-challenges-even-when-employers-try-to-be-family-friendly
8. National Partnership for Women & Families. (2018). The Pregnancy Discrimination Act at 40: A guide for advocates.
9. National Women's Law Center. (2018). Gender inequality and women in the workplace.
10. Staff, Forbes. (2019, June 12). 25% of women report discrimination or unfair treatment at work. Employee Benefits News.