Equal pay for equal work: It’s a no-brainer, right? Apparently, it’s not – at least if we’re judging by what’s going on with women’s wages across the nation.
According to Pew Research Center, women earned just 83% of what men earned according to their most recent data.
While the wage gap has improved within the last few decades, progress is slowing down. In fact, a report from the Institute for Women’s Policy Research details how progress in narrowing the gender pay gap as well as gender integration of occupations has plateaued within the past decade.
The underlying causes vary from industry and occupational differences to the unexplained. Industry differences and occupational differences are the main drivers with the most potential effect on the gender wage gap.
It’s important to note that aspects like education and union membership don’t even factor into this wage gap – in fact, they have an adverse effect on the gap. That means that women applying for the same jobs are usually equally or more educated and qualified than their male counterparts.
While it may take a while to resolve the issue all together, it can be helpful for women to determine which industries are more likely to have broader pay gaps between genders.
Take a look at the top five jobs with the widest gender pay gaps, according to Monster:
5. Chief Executive Officer
Difference in pay between genders: 15%
4. Portfolio Manager
Difference in pay between genders: 15% 3. Human Resources Recruiting Director
Difference in pay between genders: 20% 2. Real Estate Broker
Difference in pay between genders: 23% 1. Sales Consultant
Difference in pay between genders: 27% Though there are those industries in which women do not currently make the same as their male counterparts, there are jobs in which women actually make more or equal to what men make in what are actually pretty male-dominated fields. Monster highlights a few of these: 1. Systems Engineer
Female Median Annual Salary: $72,300
Male Median Annual Salary: 71,500 2. Electrical Engineer
Female Median Annual Salary: $66,000
Male Median Annual Salary: $66,000 3. Mechanical Engineer
Female Median Annual Salary: $61,000
Male Median Annual Salary: $60,400 4. Videographer
Female Median Annual Salary: $39,300
Male Median Annual Salary: $38,800 5. Computer Repair Technician
Female Median Annual Salary: $31,500
Male Median Annual Salary: $31,500 While rankings and lists are fun to read, it’s important to remember that this is an average representation. That means that not all jobs within industries listed above will have a significant wage gap in every position throughout the country. However, it’s beneficial for women in various industries to become educated on such issues in order to demand equal pay from their employers.
Difference in pay between genders: 15%
Difference in pay between genders: 15% 3. Human Resources Recruiting Director
Difference in pay between genders: 20% 2. Real Estate Broker
Difference in pay between genders: 23% 1. Sales Consultant
Difference in pay between genders: 27% Though there are those industries in which women do not currently make the same as their male counterparts, there are jobs in which women actually make more or equal to what men make in what are actually pretty male-dominated fields. Monster highlights a few of these: 1. Systems Engineer
Female Median Annual Salary: $72,300
Male Median Annual Salary: 71,500 2. Electrical Engineer
Female Median Annual Salary: $66,000
Male Median Annual Salary: $66,000 3. Mechanical Engineer
Female Median Annual Salary: $61,000
Male Median Annual Salary: $60,400 4. Videographer
Female Median Annual Salary: $39,300
Male Median Annual Salary: $38,800 5. Computer Repair Technician
Female Median Annual Salary: $31,500
Male Median Annual Salary: $31,500 While rankings and lists are fun to read, it’s important to remember that this is an average representation. That means that not all jobs within industries listed above will have a significant wage gap in every position throughout the country. However, it’s beneficial for women in various industries to become educated on such issues in order to demand equal pay from their employers.
