This report, rooted in original research, wastes no time debunking rosy notions of gender equality. It shows that women earn far less than their male counterparts over the long term. It also tells how too many women — but few men — have low lifelong earnings. Readers will learn about the causes and consequences of such disparities and discover policy recommendations aimed at making the workplace a fairer — and more financially stable — landscape for all employees.
Myth: The earnings gap between genders has narrowed to 23%. Reality: This gap is shockingly still chasm-wide, with women earning 62% less than their male counterparts over the same 15-year period.
Findings & Stats
Policy Recommendations
This report offers nine ideas for enhancing gender equality in the workplace. These include: promoting family-friendly flexible work schedules, increasing subsidies for child care and early education, and supporting paid leave for family care.
Study Specifics
To measure the long-term earnings gap, this report compares the average annual earnings, across 15 years, of individuals between the ages of 26 and 59. This comparison includes workers of all types, regardless of how many hours worked or years of income earned.
Workplace Trends
Compared to men, women are less likely to work year-round. They are also more likely to work part-time and spend entire years out of the labor force.
Poor and Female
Researchers looked at individuals with annual incomes below $15,000 who worked for all 15-years analyzed. Know what they found? More than 90% of these low earners are women.
Earnings Inequality
The average woman earned $273,592 during the study’s 15-year window. The average man? $722,693.
No Education Edge
Women with a bachelor’s degree pull in paychecks that are smaller than those earned by men with just high-school diploma — or less.
Statements & Quotations
This study finds that women workers, in their prime earning years, make only 38% of what men earn.
The U.S. can develop a better way to share responsibility for family care and work, improving long-term economic security for women and men.
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