Women's Pay Versus Men's Pay

Marc Martinez, Kiara Jones, Sal Espinoza

Laura Metzger

English-1302

10 February 2015

Women’s Pay Versus Men’s Pay

            The premise of the article “Hacking Tech’s Diversity Problem” by Joan C. Williams, was reflecting on women’s pay checks in the workforce, and how they differ from men’s paychecks. Ever since women first got involved in the workface their pay has miraculously lower considering what men had been paid throughout the decades. Many would describe this as unfair. It is seen throughout many careers that women can hold their own just as much as men. However, many women are not able to receive the same amount of pay as men because they have maternal needs. For example, women will give birth, therefore they will need to be let off of work to take care of their child.

            Considering the information regarding women taking a maternal leave from work, we believe that this should not have an effect on their pay. Likewise, men should also be capable of taking the same leave of absence from work, to care for their newborn if they please. It takes two to make a child so both parents should have equal rights or make decisions on how to care for their child.

            Our view is that both male and female should have equal pay. Regardless if a women should take time off to care for her child, or if a man should want to do the same. They could have the option to divide a pay of absence to take care of their child.

            Nowadays, it is often common to come across a single father, not just a single mom. So why should a father not have the option to take off of work to care for their child? It is not just gender discrimination against women. This is also an issue regarding fathers and the rights they are entitles to.

            Statistically, it is shown that a mother is “79% less likely to be hired” (Williams 98). This is not fair for women, specifically mothers. If mothers want to apply for a job, having kids should not decrease their chances of getting the job. Mothers with children should be treated the same as a single father with a child.

            Men in the workforce are said to, “have families to support” and supposedly, “mothers do not want stretch assignments” (Williams page 99). This stereotype is damaging the wages of women in the workforce. Single mothers who do not have a man in their family have a family to support. Why should they not be treated equally?

Once again, women have shown that they are capable of doing the same work that men do. Therefore, women should be able to have the same wages as men, but they do not. Women are, “offered an average of $11,000 less in salary, and are held to higher performance standards” (Williams 98).

Women in the workforce are being mistreated, just because they might have to take a maternity leave. Women are doing the same work as men, and are expected to have a higher performance than a man. This is wrong and unfair to women in the workforce, and is a problem that needs to be highly addressed, and solved.

 

 

 

Works Cited

Williams, Joan C. "Hacking Tech's Diversity Problem." Harvard Business Review 92.10 (2014): 94-100. Business Source Complete. Web. 10 Feb. 2015.