Wage Discrimination Continues

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Buying Influence, Inc. is a non-profit consumer advocacy organization seeking to guide consumers to harness their buying power so that corporations make more socially responsible business decisions. Collectively, informed consumers can be a powerful tool for change.

Our flagship campaign is to close the pay gap and stop wage discrimination. Dr. Maria Kunstadter, founder and CEO of Buying Influence, Inc., states, "In 2006 women continue to be paid less than men, and the statistics are appalling! Women earn less than 74 cents for each dollar men earn. This is in spite of the fact that the Equal Pay Act was enacted in 1963. That’s 43 years of wage discrimination, which we are now targeting for change.”

Wage Discrimination and the Equal Pay Act

Forty-three years ago with the passage of the Equal Pay Act, aimed at wage discrimination, it became illegal to pay women lower rates for the same job just because of their sex. Gender could no longer make a difference but differences in seniority, merit, the quality or quantity of work, or other considerations could.

Despite the Equal Pay Act and many improvements in women's economic status over the past 40-plus years, wage discrimination still exists. These wage inequalities are not merely a result of women’s qualifications or choices.

Wage discrimination continues despite women’s increased educational attainment. Although more women are attaining bachelor’s and advanced degrees than men, in 1999 the median wages of female college graduates were $17,600 less than those of male graduates.

Wage discrimination continues despite women’s greater level of experience in the workforce. For five additional years of work experience, women gain only approximately 30 cents per hour compared to $1.20 for white men.

Wage discrimination continues even though women are spending less time out of the workforce raising children. In fact, women spend more time in the workforce than ever before. Sixty-one percent of women with children under the age of two and 78 percent of mothers with school-age children remain in the workforce.

With a record 68 million women in the workforce, wage discrimination hurts the majority of American families. Families lose $200 billion in income annually to the wage gap—an average loss of more than $4,000 for each working family. In addition, wage discrimination lowers total lifetime earnings, thereby reducing women’s benefits from Social Security and pension plans. Wage discrimination is directly related to poverty, period.

Wage Discrimination: Facts, Stats, and Resources

Wage discrimination happens at the top, too: “Female CEOs receive, on average, about 30% less in pay, bonuses and options than male CEOs, or $900,000 vs. $1.3 million." -- L.P. Morton, "Targeting CEOs", Public Relations Quarterly 43 (2003) 43-4

“Nearly 75% of women in the United States earn $30,000 per year or less. Women of color are the most vulnerable to this pattern of low earnings through the life cycle.” -- Dr. Laurie Young, Executive Director of The Older Women’s League (OWL) speaking on wage discrimination.

Wage discrimination across socio-economic strata: “Throughout the United States, women earn less than men, are seriously underrepresented in political office, and make up a disproportionate share of people in poverty. Even in areas where there have been significant advances in women status, rates of progress are slow. For example, at the rate of progress achieved between 1989 and 2002, women will not achieve wage parity for more than 50 years.” -- Amy Caiazza, PH.D, Study Director, and April Shaw, Sr. Policy Analyst for Institute for Women’s Policy Research (IWPR)

"Top 10 Reasons for the Wage Gap in 2001," National Committee on Pay Equity website. These are 10 statements with supporting philosophy and facts. You can't read this without having an "ah-ha!" moment about wage discrimination.

"It's Time for Women to Earn Equal Pay," AFL-CIO website. A good resource for national and state data; also, in interesting point of view on how equal pay and ending wage discrimination also helps men.

"Gender Class Action Settlement With Morgan Stanley Announced Today." The settlement is valued at over $70 million, with an immediate lump sum payment of $46 million. The lawsuit focuses on gender inequity in the distribution of accounts and other business opportunities . . . which resulted in wage discrimination. Opportunity discrimination = Wage discrimination. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of 2700 female Financial Advisors and Registered Financial Advisor Trainees employed by Morgan Stanley at any time since August 5, 2003. This is one of the ten largest monetary awards in a gender discrimination settlements in U.S. history.

Wage Discrimination Information from the EEOC

The right of employees to be free from wage discrimination is protected under several federal laws, including the following enforced by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC): the Equal Pay Act of 1963, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, and Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.

The Equal Pay Act requires that men and women be given equal pay for equal work in the same establishment. In determining wage discrimination, the jobs need not be identical, but they must be substantially equal. It is job content, not job titles, that determines whether jobs are substantially equal.

Pay differentials are permitted when they are based on seniority, merit, quantity or quality of production, or a factor other than sex otherwise, pay differentials are considered wage discrimination. These are known as "affirmative defenses" and it is the employer's burden to prove that they apply.

In Fiscal Year 2006, EEOC received 663 charges of wage discrimination. EEOC resolved 743 wage discrimination charges in FY 2006 and recovered $3.1 million in monetary benefits for charging parties.

Other Resources Regarding Wage Discrimination

Here are some links to other sources of information about compensation discrimination.
http://www.dol.gov/esa/media/reports/ofccp/equalpay.htm
http://www.dol.gov/esa/regs/compliance/ofccp/practice.htm
http://www.dol.gov/esa/regs/compliance/ofccp/compdata.htm
http://www.dol.gov/esa/whd/
http://www.usdoj.gov/crt/activity.html#emp

National Wage Data Useful for Wage Discrimination Research
For pay-setting purposes - data include information on the level of difficulty and complexity of work.
For 450 occupations - occupations are classified according to 1990 Occupational Classification System Manual.
For over 800 occupations - data are classified using the Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) System.
For broad occupational groups - occupations are aggregated into major occupational groups (for example, "professional occupations") and further aggregated into three broad occupational groups (white-collar, blue-collar, and service occupations).
For about 400 industries - occupational wage data for sector, 3-, 4- and 5-digit NAICS (North American Industry Classification System) industries. Data by occupation and gender - data for men and for women in 200 occupations (from the Current Population Survey) (txt) (pdf) REGIONAL WAGE DATA
For Census divisions - New England, Middle Atlantic, East North Central, West North Central, South Atlantic, East South Central, West South Central, Mountain, and Pacific. STATE WAGE DATA
By State - 50 States plus District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico, and Virgin Islands. METROPOLITAN AREA WAGE DATA
For pay-setting purposes - data include information on the level of difficulty and complexity of work.
For 375 metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) and 34 metropolitan divisions - an MSA is made up of one or more counties and consists of a core area containing a substantial population nucleus, together with adjacent communities having a high degree of economic and social integration with that core; also, each MSA must have at least one urbanized area of 50,000 or more inhabitants. Eleven MSAs have subdivisions called metropolitan divisions.
For metropolitan areas, consolidated metropolitan statistical areas (CMSAs), and non-metropolitan counties - CMSAs consist of 2 or more primary metropolitan statistical areas (PMSAs).
BLS wage data by area and occupation are from the National Compensation Survey, Occupational Employment Statistics Survey, or the Current Population Survey. Additional BLS programs that publish wage data (though not by detailed occupation) are Employment Cost Trends, Current Employment Statistics, and Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages