Category: Civic Issue

Women did not start playing on sports teams until 1882. After this point, many woman began to earn an income from playing their sport, similar to how professional mens’ sports teams did it. However, the reality of the pay disparity is just as bad for professional female athletes as any other occupation. According to statistics from Aldephi University, the pay gap between men and women varies greatly depending on the industry and professional sports sits on that list at 96%. This means that female professional athletes tend to earn 96% of what their male counterparts are making per year. For example, when comparing Men’s National Basketball to Women’s National Basketball, men are making an average of $10.8 million while women are only making $113.3 thousand (Aldephi University).

It is difficult to understand exactly why this pay gap exists, but to put it simply: women’s sports tend to be less popular than men’s sports, so they will generate less revenue (Lexology). It makes sense, right?

So what can we do about this? The United States Women’s National Soccer team was ahead of the time and they sued the organization for gender discrimination. They recognized that the US Men’s team was making significantly more money than they were, so they did something about it. This allowed them to receive $24 million from the lawsuit that could be shared among the team (The New York Times).

Eventually, many other individuals or organizations, like Billy Jean King in her tennis match from 1973, started catching on to the pay gap and wanted to do something about it, too. Because of these voices that recognized the injustice towards female athletes who work just as hard as male athletes, the pay gap has only decreased in professional sports throughout the years. It is imperative that we understand how to recognize when a particular demographic is being underserved financially to ensure that both men and women are being paid for the amount that they deserve to, regardless of sex or gender.

 

Thank you.

 

Citations:

Cavil, Elinor, and Sara Jenkins. “Gender Pay Gap in Sport – Disparity, Progress and the Way Forward?” Lexology, DLA Piper, 29 Mar. 2023, www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=30c3aac5-e4b6-4661-8557-52bc6f0d331d#:~:text=The%20main%20explanation%20put%20forward,restricted%20from%20participating%20in%20sport.

Holtermann, Callie. “What Should Be Done about the Gender Pay Gap in Sports?” The New York Times, The New York Times, 25 Feb. 2022, www.nytimes.com/2022/02/25/learning/what-should-be-done-about-the-gender-pay-gap-in-sports.html.

Wigley, Reed. “Male vs Female Professional Sports Salary Comparison.” Adelphi University Online, 1 Dec. 2023, online.adelphi.edu/articles/male-female-sports-salary/.

It has certainly been a hot-topic in the news the past few years that the pay disparity between genders is substantial. According to Forbes Advisor, women earn 16% less than men on average (Haan). Although there have been numerous repeated attempts to dissolve the gap, there is still a disparity that exists.

The statistics can be broken down based on race and ethnicity, too. For example, “Women of color are among the lowest-paid workers in rural areas, with rural Black and Hispanic women making just 56 cents for every dollar that rural white, non-Hispanic men make.” Additionally, Latinas are only paid 55% of what white men are paid in 2024, and Black women are only paid 64% of what white men are paid (Haas). There are plenty more statistics that work to prove the factual difference in pay between white men and women of color.

When examining the pay gap, it is important to understand that there are two different categories for the pay gap. One type is known as ‘uncontrolled’ and the other is called ‘controlled’. The controlled gap is referring to the difference in pay between men and women who are working the same job, while the uncontrolled gap describes the difference between men and women in different occupations.

Another important concept to understand is that the title of the job heavily impacts the disparity in pay between men and women. Yes, the gap extends to nearly profession, but some job titles see the impact more than others. This is crucial in understanding causes in the pay gap in order to develop a solution.

Another helpful tool in understanding the breakdown in the pay gap is to compare the hourly wage rates between men and women. According to the Economic Policy Institute, the hourly pay for low-wage jobs is $13.55 for men and $12.00 for women. For middle-wage jobs, the pay is $24.77 for men and $20.96 for women. Finally, for high-wage jobs the pay for men is $65.08 and for women it is $50.03. As you can tell, no matter what percentile one’s job falls into, the pay disparity still exists.

We need to work towards creating a work environment where a wage gap does not exist between the genders, and especially between women of color. Here are some ways to achieve this goal, according to the American Association of University Women:

1. Donate to an organization that supports gender equity
2. Be a part of the equity network within the AAUW
3. Partner with the AAUW

Thank you.

 

Works Cited:

“Gender Wage Gap Widens Even as Low-Wage Workers See Strong Gains: Women Are Paid Roughly 22% Less than Men on Average.” Economic Policy Institute, www.epi.org/blog/gender-wage-gap-widens-even-as-low-wage-workers-see-strong-gains-women-are-paid-roughly-22-less-than-men-on-average/. Accessed 20 Mar. 2024.

Haan, Katherine. “Gender Pay Gap Statistics in 2024.” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 1 Mar. 2024, www.forbes.com/advisor/business/gender-pay-gap-statistics/#:~:text=Women%20earn%2016%25%20less%20than,%2C%20non%2DHispanic%20men%20make.

“The Simple Truth about the Gender Pay Gap: Aauw Report.” AAUW, 16 Oct. 2023, www.aauw.org/resources/research/simple-truth/.

As I continue to expand on how representation for women in the workplace has changed throughout history, I want to specifically focus on healthcare professions. In the year 1950, women only made up 6% of America’s medical workforce. However, women have continued to grow their place in the medical facilities, and “for the first time in history, 2017 saw more women entering medical school than men” (American Medical Association).

According to the United States Census, “The number of full-time, year-round workers in health care occupations has almost double since 2000, increasing from 5 million to 9 million workers… Women account for three-quarters of full-time, year-round healthcare workers today.”

Since the turn of the century, women have driven the extreme increase in health care positions that we see today. Not only are women representing more full-time healthcare positions, but they are also taking over more higher-paying occupations in healthcare. The wide range of earnings in healthcare is directly a result of one’s educational experience. Prior to 2000 when women were not as likely to attend higher-level education like graduate school or medical school, men were holding more higher-paying positions like physicians or surgeons. However, as of now, “women make up majority veterinarians and pharmacists, and have made strong gains, doubling their representation, in other occupations such as dentists and optometrists.” Additionally, the largest healthcare profession is registered nurses and women make up 85% of this occupation.

There are several reasons why the nation has seen such an increase in female representation in the healthcare field. According to a 2021 study by McKinsey & Company, women are better than men at things like: Providing emotional support to employees (19% of men and 31% of women); Intervening to prevent or deal with employee burnout (16% of men and 21% of women; Leading and supporting diversity, equity, and inclusion (7% of men and 11% of women). Not only are women seeing more representation in healthcare in general, but because of these traits they are also obtaining higher-level leadership roles.

 

Citations:

Jennifer Cheeseman Day and Cheridan Christnacht. “Women Hold 76% of All Health Care Jobs, Gaining in Higher-Paying Occupations.” Census.Gov, 28 Oct. 2021, www.census.gov/library/stories/2019/08/your-health-care-in-womens-hands.html.

“Women in Health Care Leadership: Past, Present and Future.” USC EMHA Online, healthadministrationdegree.usc.edu/blog/women-in-health-care-leadership. Accessed 27 Feb. 2024.

“Women’s History Month: Women in Medicine: Amn Healthcare.” Women’s History Month: Women in Medicine | AMN Healthcare, www.amnhealthcare.com/blog/physician/perm/women-in-medicine-a-timeline-of-15-pioneers-and-innovators/#:~:text=According%20to%20the%20American%20Medical,entering%20medical%20school%20than%20men. Accessed 27 Feb. 2024.

Women have not always had a place in the workforce. In order to appreciate how far our society has come with representing women, it’s important to examine where we came from.

19th Century 

In the first half the century, women mostly worked inside of their home. This included things like cooking, cleaning, and taking care of the children. However, none of these activities allowed for women to make an income for themselves. Marriage was an entirely different concept in the 19th century, and it was expected that the husband support his family financially, not the wife.

It was not until the middle of the century when women were beginning to find jobs outside of the home. Women held jobs such as laundresses, bath-house operators, mid-wives, and nurses. Some women also worked to take care of others’ homes, as hotel operators, and seamstresses.

20th Century

This type of work continued for women into the 20th century. Even though women were beginning to earn a place in some areas of work, their wages were seen as secondary to that of men. Their money was often seen as less important than their husband’s, but it was crucial to maintaining the family and household. “According to the 1911 census, domestic service was the largest employer of women and girls, with 28% of all employed women in England and Wales engaged in domestic service. Many women were were employed in small industries like shirt making, nail making, chain making, and shoe stitching” (Striking Women). These jobs were often known as ‘sweating industries’ because women were often forced to work very long hours with extremely low pay.

Between 1950-1960, the United States saw a rapid increase in population; the United States also saw an increase in labor force. By 1980, the labor force participation rate of women was growing largely and reached a high of 52%. Toossi states in the Monthly Labor Review from 2002 that, “women in the 25-34 and 35-44 age groups increased by 20.5 percentage points and 14.4 percentage points, respectively. No other labor force group has ever experienced an increase in participation rates of this magnitude in one decade” (Toossi).

21st Century 

There is no doubt that women have climbed the ladder towards the top of the workforce by 2023. A large 75% of women ages 25-54 are working today, and this compares to only 67% a decade ago. Additionally, women are working longer hours as 84% of working women are in full-time positions. Not only are more women working for longer hours, but their job titles are equal to that of men.

Although this century has not been “smooth-sailing” for working women, the improvements since the 19th century are drastic, and I imagine that they will only improve over the next century.

Thank you.

Citations:

Almeida, Beth, and Isabela Salas-Betsch. “Fact Sheet: The State of Women in the Labor Market in 2023.” Center for American Progress, 2 June 2023, www.americanprogress.org/article/fact-sheet-the-state-of-women-in-the-labor-market-in-2023/.

“Striking Women.” 19th and Early 20th Century | Striking Women, www.striking-women.org/module/women-and-work/19th-and-early-20th-century. Accessed 8 Feb. 2024.

Terroil, Rubye Du. “The Role of Women in Nineteenth Century San Antonio – Journal of San Antonio.” The Role of Women in the 19th Century, www.uiw.edu/sanantonio/TheRoleofWomen.html#:~:text=In%20the%20first%20half%20of,%2Dwives%2C%20nurses%2C%20governesses. Accessed 8 Feb. 2024.

Toossi, Mitra. A Century of Change: The U.S. Labor Force, 1950-2050, 2002, www.bls.gov/opub/mlr/2002/05/art2full.pdf.

There is no doubt that women have been striving to move up the “workforce ladder” and to gain recognition for their abilities outside of the home for decades. It was not until well into the 20th century that women began growing their place in the workforce, and it has not proved to be an easy battle for women since then.

The COVID-19 Pandemic that hit the United States in early 2020 left even more of a struggle for working women, particularly those that also had the job of being a mother. Due to the spread of COVID, many people lost their jobs overnight. Women tend to be overrepresented in low-income service jobs like hospitality and retail, and these were the jobs where employees suddenly found themselves unemployed. Additionally, schools and daycares closed during this time leaving mothers no choice but to stay home with their children. Not only were women not working during this time, but many of them were not even looking for jobs. According to the American Bar Association, “In February 2021, women’s labor force participation rate hit a low last seen in 1988, losing an entire generation of gains” (ABA).

Fortunately, the job stress of COVID seems to be far behind us as women are working 1.5 million more jobs in the United States than they were in 2020. However, the pandemic brought light to the lack of childcare and job protection that was available to women prior to 2020. Women have always been very vulnerable in their jobs, but they crumbled even more under the pressure of COVID.

It would be insensitive to claim that only women were faced with job insecurities during COVID, but one can see how drastic the employment disparity was between men and women during this time. According to a survey conducted by the National Women’s Law Center in February 2022, 42% of mothers reported that they could maintain their typical work hours during the pandemic when their children were not in school, while 58% of fathers reported they could maintain theirs per usual. For children under five, the results proved to be even more drastic: only 28% of mothers with children under five years old could maintain their typical work hours, compared to 54% of fathers.

How can we enforce public policy to support women in the workplace who are also caregivers? I believe that fair and predictable work schedules are something that every employee deserves. As mentioned before, a lot of the women that fell unemployed during the pandemic were those with low-income service jobs. These kinds of jobs are generally known for calling in their workers last minute, or publishing schedules with little to no notice. This is extremely unfair to working parents that are trying to organize their chaotic home lives. Not only can fair and predictable scheduling help, but public policies relating to paid family leave could be crucial in ensuring that mothers are not left to choose between their income and their family.

Thank you.

Citations

Jacobs, Elisabeth, and Kate Bahn . “Women’s History Month: U.S. Women’s Labor Force Participation.” Equitable Growth, 22 Mar. 2019, equitablegrowth.org/womens-history-month-u-s-womens-labor-force-participation/#:~:text=Gradually%2C%20beginning%20after%201890%20and,as%20a%20U%2Dshaped%20curve.

Martin, Emily J. “Women and the Workplace — What We Learned from COVID.” American Bar Association, 31 Oct. 2023, www.americanbar.org/groups/crsj/publications/human_rights_magazine_home/labor-and-employment-rights/women-and-the-workplace/#:~:text=The%20job%20loss%20that%20flowed,in%20the%20wake%20of%20COVID.