Women's Labor Faces Uphill Battle for Parity

[Triana]

Run Date: 09/04/06
By Kara Alaimo
WeNews correspondent

This Labor Day, working women face a stubborn gender-based wage gap. State legislators around the country have introduced bills to close the gap, but opponents argue the proposals are difficult to enforce and will discourage business investment.

Advocates for the Louisiana Equal Pay Act

(WOMENSENEWS)--When Eileen was hired as a university research technician in 1974, she was incensed to discover that one of her co-workers, a man who had less scientific training than her, made $150 more each month for doing the same job. "I confronted my boss and he justified this by saying this man was married," Eileen said. "And I said, well, I have a child."

Twenty-two years ago, speaking up earned her a raise. Now 57, Eileen--who asked that her last name be withheld out of fear of retribution from her current employer, a different university research center--said the system has not changed. Earlier this year, a man was hired in a position above Eileen which carries a minimum pay higher than her own even though he has less experience.

"You kind of expected this in the early 1970s," Eileen said. "But I would have expected a little better in 2006."

Eileen said she believes that, over the years, the lesser wages she earned because of her gender hurt her and the three children she raised as a single mother.

Economist Evelyn Murphy, author of "Getting Even: Why Women Don't Get Paid Like Men and What to Do About It," published by Simon and Schuster in 2001, agrees with her. She has calculated that, over the course of a lifetime, a working woman will earn between $700,000 and $2 million less than her male counterparts.

...MORE...
http://www.womensenews.org/article.cfm?aid=2876

[cap]

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