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Archived News Release--Caution:
information may be out of date.
For more information call: (202) 693-0023
Declaring that it is time to "separate fact from fiction"
on the pay gap between women and men, U.S. Secretary of Labor Alexis M. Herman
today released a new booklet with data showing that women earn 75 cents for
ever dollar a man earns. The booklet was released at the White House conference
on equal pay.
The conference and "About Equal Pay," Secretary Herman's
booklet, coincided with Equal Pay Day, the day on which American women's wages,
added to their previous year's earnings, equal what men make for a full
calendar year.
"It is wrong that women do not have access to all jobs and
that equally qualified women are paid less than men for the same work,"
Secretary Herman said. "When you go to the grocery store to buy a $1 loaf of
bread, the cashier doesn't look up at you and say, 'since you're a woman, it's
75 cents.'"
Fictions dispelled in the booklet include:
There is no pay gap. In fact, women earn 75 cents to a
man's dollar and the gap is greater for African-American women 64 cents and for
Hispanic women 55 cents.
Men make more than women because women lack education and
experience. In fact, at age 30, the average woman has about the same level of
education and just eight fewer months of work experience, yet she earns 20
percent less. At all levels of educational attainment men still earn more than
women.
Men earn more than women because women choose lower paid
jobs. In fact, when women seek and break into the better paying traditionally
male occupations, they frequently are paid less than their male counterparts.
In all major occupational groups, men still earn more than women.
The pay gap is disappearing. In fact, despite progress over
the last several decades, the pay gap is still very large, particularly for
women of color.
This is a problem only for older women. In fact, women do
not achieve parity with men at any age. Women aged 55 and older earn 68 percent
as much; those aged 25-54 earn 75 percent as much, and even women aged 16-24
are paid only 91 percent as much.
The problem only affects women. In fact, when women aren't
paid equally the whole family pays the price. Women's earnings help support
nearly three out of four working American families.
The problem has no cost to society. In fact, pay inequities
also add up to pension inequities, with the average retired woman getting about
half the pension benefits of the average retired man. Since women tend to live
longer, they must stretch dollars further and rely on costly social
services.
The facts are supported in the booklet by charts and data
showing comparisons between men and women.
"A 15-year-old in Chicago told us about taking a survey in
her fourth grade class comparing allowances," Herman said. "She found that boys
received, on average, $3.18 a week for doing three chores. Girls made $2.63 for
doing 10 to 12 chores. So you can see that this unfairness starts early and
stays entrenched. And I think the young woman who did that survey has a lot to
contribute. I just hope she gets a fair opportunity to develop her talents and
to succeed.
"And I hope people will read this information and
understand that we have a lot of work yet to do before we can guarantee her and
other young women that their opportunities will not be limited."
Archived News Release--Caution:
information may be out of date.
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