Equal Rights, but Not Equal Pay?

Throughout the years women have made significant progress in their goals to reach gender equality. However, even with all the progress made, there are still underlying issues that need to be addressed. Like the wage gap that exist between men and women today. I think one of the problems today is that many women are unaware of the significant wage gap that exists between men and women. Perhaps this is due impart, to the fact that we live in an society that has trained us so well into believing that certain jobs are created for women and certain jobs are created for men. This ideology has caused many women to shy away from those male dominated jobs which, tend to be the highest paying jobs. When women were granted equal opportunities it did not guarantee us equality within the work place, which is why it is important that we address this problem.

I read an interesting article titled “The Other Gender Gap” where a woman named Hazel Dews confessed that after 25 years of working, at the Russell Senate Office Building in Washington, she only makes $20,000 a year. Hazel Dew states however, that, that does not bother her as much as the fact that the men that are doing the same job earn $30,000 a year. According to Hazel Dews they both scrub, mop, vacuum, and push the trash the only difference in the work that they do, is that the men use a scrub machine which, she states a woman could do too. Dew also notes that the men are called “laborers” and can progress up to five grades. While the women are called “custodial workers” and can only advance two grades. The author points out that “the biggest reason for the pay gap is not discrimination against individual women but rather discrimination against women’s occupations”. The author notes that as the percentage of women in an occupation rises, wages tend to fall, she gives the example of traditional “women’s jobs” like clerical workers, teachers, childcare workers, nurses etc. which tend to earn less than men.

It was surprising to read that both the women and men at this place were performing the same work and yet, did not receive the same pay. It is interesting to see that both the men and women were labeled differently for the same work that was being carried out. The men were the “laborers” which makes them sound like they are doing so much more work than the women, who are being labeled “custodial workers” which sounds much more laid back. I agree with the author in that the traditional “women jobs” are often discriminated perhaps because they are seen as inferior to “men jobs”. However I also think that women tend to shy away from jobs that are seen as “male occupations” as well as men shy away from “women jobs”.

In the article “The Gendered and Racialized Development of U.S Capitalism” the author points out that the reason for the wage gaps that exists is due to racial and gender segregation in a capitalist country. The U.S has created a society that benefits certain groups while it outcasts others. The male dominated jobs tend to push away the women from entering those particular occupations because they are not seen as suited for women. Many opportunities in the work force today are very much focused on race and gender as this article points out.

It is important that people move away from the stereotypes that revolve around men and women so that both men and women can be integrated into different occupations. It is also important that “women occupations” be given the same importance as those of men. The wage gap in America that exists today should not be so, in country that claims to be a country of progress.

 

 

 

Barko, N. (2000, The other gender gap. The American Prospect, 11(15), 61-63. Retrieved  from http://search.proquest.com/docview/201136541?accountid=27495

Andersen, Margaret L., and Collins Patricia. Hill. "The Gendered and Racialized Developmen of U.S Capitalism." Race, Class, and Gender: An Anthology. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, 1995. 125-31. Print.