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Manika Joshi

Bachelors in management studies

1910110226

Prof. Meghna Bhaduria

ENG104: Academic Writing

The Gender Pay Gap: Is it real?

The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) defines gender pay

gap as the difference between median earnings of men and women relative to median earnings

of men. To put in laypeople terms, the term denotes the difference between average gross

earnings of men and women. The gender pay gap is an issue that elicits a wide range of

responses. Some articles say that the gender gap is widening in particular industries, while

others argue that the difference is much wider among women in specific minority groups.

While women have made significant gain in the past few decades in terms of education and

the situation in regard to this rift has improved in the recent years and some of the gap can be

accounted for; by structural elements such as differences in employment, level of education

and work experience, gender pay gap remains a persistent issue worldwide.

It has in fact become so ubiquitous that it is seen as normal, despite many countries having

passed minimum wage laws and laws mandating equal treatment of women at the workplace.

(Jagani, Hitesh N). This paper seeks to make a case for the relevance of and need to address

gender pay gap in the current socio-political-economic environment. The paper will take a

closer look at the present circumstances with respect to the pay gap, and examine the claims
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made against the pay gap alongside and confute them with counter claims and arguments. It

will also cover the factors responsible for it and the reasons why they and their subsequent

consequences are pertinent thereby elaborating on why the pay gap is indeed a real, layered,

and debilitating issue.

The pay gap is an expression of gender inequality and unequal treatment in the workplace,

where women and men work side by side, and is a persistent hindrance to women's

advancement. While women's labor force participation rates have moved closer to men's

during the previous several decades, they are still less likely than men to work for a living in

every OECD country. When women do work, they are more likely to work part-time, less

likely to advance to managerial roles and are more likely to face bias and earn less than males.

(“Progress on gender equality far too slow - OECD”)

The median full-time female worker earns nearly 15% less than her male counterpart during

the entire course of her career, a percentage that has scarcely changed since 2010. One would

think that women's greater academic attainment over time in the past years may suggest that

they should earn more on average than men.

Other factors, however, on the other hand, overpower any positive effects of schooling. 7

percent of the wage gap is attributed to disparities in the likelihood of working exceptionally

long hours between men and women. Industrial segregation accounts for another 11% of the

salary disparity between men and women. Occupational segregation, or the funneling of men

and women into various sorts of businesses and employment based on gender norms and

expectations, has been observed by researchers. Women's employment, which have

traditionally had a majority-female workforce, such as home health aides and childcare
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workers, tend to pay less and provide fewer benefits than men's jobs, which have traditionally

had a mostly male population. (Hegewisch and Hartmann)

However, there is an "unexplained component" that accounts for more than half of the wage

disparity between men and women in OECD countries. The unexplained component is

connected to gender stereotypes, cultural conventions, institutions, discrimination against

women, and personal, unobservable attributes of employees, such as motivation and skill.

The gender pay gap has long-term financial consequences. For one thing, it directly

contributes to women's poverty. Women's salary disparities persist throughout their careers

and even after they exit the job. Wage discrimination continues from job to job, accumulating

over time, because employers utilize women's prior income history to calculate their wages in

new jobs. (“The Simple Truth about the Pay Gap”) As a result, women also receive less

income from Social Security, pensions, and other sources when they retire than men do since

they are paid less throughout their working years. (Fischer & Hayes, 2013).

Gender discrimination is at the basis of numerous societal inequalities, according to research.

However, on the other hand, some continue to argue that the gender pay gap is a hoax, and

that it is mostly due to free will rather than discrimination. Women's decision to work in

lower-paying areas, to be less proactive in demanding higher pay, or to believe that becoming

a mother disqualifies them from performing and therefore earning as much as men. The

following statements are ones that are used to debunk Gender gap, we shall look at why these

do not hold true and are misleading.

“The gender pay gap isn’t about discrimination”

While some of the wage disparity between men and women can be explained by factors such

as employment, industry, education, and experience, 38% of the pay gap remains unaccounted

for. Women face discrimination on a conscious or unconscious level when it comes to being

recruited or promoted, which explains the remaining gap. “It thrives in workplaces that

prohibit open pay discussions and where employees are afraid of retaliation.” (“THE SIMPLE

TRUTH ABOUT GENDER WAGE DISPARITY - Womancing”) Employers may

discriminate in pay when they rely on prior salary history in hiring and compensation choices;

this might allow discrimination-influenced pay decisions to follow women from job to job.

(Blau and Kahn)

“Women shouldn’t choose lower-paid jobs if they want to be paid more”

We cannot disregard the pay gap simply as a result of different decisions and choices. Many

majors are still heavily dominated by a single gender. Female students are focused on fields

such as education, health, and psychology, which are associated with lower wages. The

higher-paying fields of engineering, mathematics, and physical sciences are dominated by

male students. This might be due to a variety of factors, including being discouraged from

studying certain courses or being discriminated against throughout the hiring process.

However, even if women choose the same professions as men, they will not often earn the

same amount of money. (Hill) In fact, if "too many" women make the same option, the field's

revenues are likely to suffer. When more women entered a field, the industry's relative income

was lower 10 years later, according to Aevanon, England, and Allison (2009). They identified

evidence of devaluation, which suggests that the quantity of women in a certain occupation
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has an impact on the industry's remuneration because women's labor is undervalued. This

demonstrates how "women's work" is undervalued in society. (Miller)

Women are not being discriminated against. They are just having children”

Gender pays gap can be attributed to the fact that women often take time off work or leave the

workforce to start a family. However, women face what is known as the ‘motherhood

penalty.’ (“8 Comebacks To 8 Common Criticisms of The Gender Wage Gap”) r. Women

who do not have children may still be viewed as “potential mothers” by employers, who may,

as a result, give women fewer professional opportunities. The difference between motherhood

and fatherhood is particularly stark. Motherhood in our (“Behind the Pay Gap”) society

entails substantial economic and personal sacrifices. (“Behind the Pay Gap”) Even worse,

women who try to return to work after having a child find they are much less likely to be

hired than childless women, childless men, and fathers. (“8 Comebacks To 8 Common

Criticisms of The Gender Wage Gap”)

Women should just work harder

Gartner's Global Talent Monitor conducted research to determine how much "discretionary

effort" men and female employees put in at work. Women put in 7% more discretionary effort

than their male counterparts, according to the research. (“Quick Facts About the Gender Wage

Gap”) Twelve of the top 16 leadership attributes, such as problem-solving and communication

skills, are rated higher by women than by males. (“Are Women Better Leaders than Men?”)

So maybe men are not 'better' in some areas than women, and vice versa - they are just not

given the same opportunities. In the twenty-first century, it is past time to let go of outdated

gender stereotypes. Women, like men, can be logical and sympathetic at the same time. Men

and women should have equal access to any career they desire. (Dent)
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Gender Gap is a moral issue. An issue deeply rooted in our culture striking at the core of

understanding what constitutes work. A problem extremely difficult to solve While the salary

difference between men and women may narrow marginally each year, it will not close

anytime soon without coordinated action. Efforts to close the pay gap must address the

various determinants as well as the numerous biases that hold women and their families

behind, particularly women of colour, LGBTQ women, and women with other diverse

identities. Strong work-family policies are also required to truly address the complex gender

wage gap, ensuring that women, who disproportionately shoulder much of the caring tasks in

their families, are fairly disadvantaged by taking time to attend to care needs. We can only

begin to remove patriarchal mechanisms that systematically disadvantage and shortchange

women and their families by enacting critical policies and transforming cultural attitudes.

Women and their families cannot afford to wait for economic security or equality. (Dent)
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REFERENCES

 Jagani, Hitesh N., and Nasheman Bandookwala. “Gender Pay Gap: A Myth or Math.”

Towards Excellence, 2021, pp. 399–410., https://doi.org/10.37867/te130136.

 Blau, Francine D., and Lawrence M. Kahn. “The Gender Wage Gap: Extent, Trends, and

Explanations.” Discussion Paper No. 9656, 2016, https://docs.iza.org/dp9656.pdf.

 “Earnings and wages - Gender wage gap.” OECD Data,

https://data.oecd.org/earnwage/gender-wage-gap.htm.

 Hegewisch, Ariane, and Heidi Hartmann. “Occupational Segregation and the Gender Wage

Gap: A Job Half Done.” Economic, Security, Mobility, and Equity, Report| IWPR, 2014,

https://iwpr.org/iwpr-issues/esme/occupational-segregation-and-the-gender-wage-gap-a-job-

half-done/.

 Hill, Catherine. “Behind the Pay Gap.” AAUW, April 2007,

https://ww3.aauw.org/research/behind-the-pay-gap/.

 Miller, Claire Cain. “As Women Take Over a Male-Dominated Field, the Pay Drops

(Published 2016).” The New York Times, 18 March 2016,

https://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/20/upshot/as-women-take-over-a-male-dominated-field-

the-pay-drops.html.

 “The Simple Truth about the Pay Gap.” AAUW,

https://www.aauw.org/resources/research/simple-truth/. Accessed 4 March 2022.

 “Are Women Better Leaders than Men?” Harvard Business Review, hbr.org, 15 Mar. 2012,

https://hbr.org/2012/03/a-study-in-leadership-women-do.

 “Quick Facts About the Gender Wage Gap.” Center for American Progress, 24 Mar. 2020,

https://www.americanprogress.org/article/quick-facts-gender-wage-gap/.
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 Dent, Georgina. “Why Women and Men Need to Negotiate Pay Rises Differently.” The

Sydney Morning Herald, www.smh.com.au, 22 Mar. 2017,

https://www.smh.com.au/money/planning-and-budgeting/why-women-and-men-need-to-

negotiate-pay-rises-differently-20170322-gv3vs7.html.

 Sangster, Elissa. “The Pay Gap Is Real. Don’t Let Anyone Convince You Otherwise.”

Forbes, www.forbes.com, 24 Mar. 2021,

https://www.forbes.com/sites/elissasangster/2021/03/24/the-pay-gap-is-real-dont-let-anyone-

convince-you-otherwise/?sh=4c7ea0b27ceb.

 Gurchiek, Kathy. “Study: Global Gender Pay Gap Has Narrowed but Still Exists.” SHRM,

www.shrm.org, 2 Apr. 2019, https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/hr-topics/behavioral-

competencies/global-and-cultural-effectiveness/pages/study-gender-pay-gap-narrows-but-

still-exists.aspx.

 “Pay Equity Information.” Pay Equity Information, www.pay-equity.org, https://www.pay-

equity.org/info-opposition.html.

 “8 Comebacks To 8 Common Criticisms of The Gender Pay Gap - Future Women.” 8

Comebacks To 8 Common Criticisms of The Gender Pay Gap - Future Women,

futurewomen.com, https://futurewomen.com/hotlists/8-comebacks-8-common-criticisms-

gender-pay-gap/.