Monday, August 9, 2010

The Myth of the Gender Pay Gap

Endlessly, the media parrots feminist organizations' grossly misleading assertion that women earn 77 to 80 cents on the dollar compared with men. Indeed, President Obama cites it all the time.

In many of my writings , for example, "Men Don't Have it Easy, Either" I've provided solid evidence of why that's so misleading: that for the truly same nature, quality, and quantity of work, women earn the same as men. When there is a pay gap, it's because women have chosen less rigorous, odious, or otherwise less demanding careers or jobs.

I've expressed frustration at the media's double standard of vetting: If you make a pro-male assertion, the media will nix it apriori or based on on a standard of rigor unrealistic in social science. But make a woman-as-victim assertion and it's published with little or no vetting. Rare exceptions are this op-ed in the New York Times and the book, Why Men Earn More.

The media's unwillingness to publish the lack of a pay gap is particularly frustrating in that the unemployment rate among men is now more than 25% higher than for women. And the gender ratio of 2010 degree recipients is 41% men, 59% women, the precise reverse of 40 years ago.

I've had five books and 600 articles well published but dare I write a pro-male piece it's almost never published. For example, in response to the irresponsibly written "The End of Men" that was the cover story in last month's The Atlantic, I wrote the far more solid "The Beginning of Men," and none of 20 publishers would publish it.

It finally took a woman to get published what I've been saying so long about the myth of a gender pay gap: One of the leading career bloggers, Penelope Trunk, just wrote this piece entitled, "A Salary Gap Between Men and Women? Oh please!"

I truly am tired of men getting treated unfairly. Perhaps it's time to take a cue from the immigration advocates who staged A Day Without Immigrants. Is it time for a national Day Without Men?

9 comments:

Robyn said...

I think you mean "less odious".

And I'm so tired of everyone being just defined by their gender. It's way too oversimplified.

Robyn

Bob said...

Yes your blog has been one of my first I have read with you prompting me to start one a few years ago and in fact I began four of them. One in particular is on the flip side of my primary blog "Nerves Galore" and that blog is called "Journalism Reports" the only way I know of to gain access to although there should be other ways to gain access to. Today's entry might capture your interest let me try an e-mail. I must read your blog it has been awhile since I have.

Robert H

Anonymous said...

It's time for you to take up a pseudonym and the persona of a woman.

If you get published more, then we know for sure it's so.

Anonymous said...

A world without men would be a terrible world. Because of my husband's hard work, I have the privilege of raising our children myself, rather than paying a stranger to care for them.

He is the backbone of our family. He makes sure that what needs to get done, gets done. He handles household tasks that I am physically too weak to accomplish. He makes sure that our children have established boundaries and encourages me to be firm and consistent about disciplining bad behavior. Being a parent would be much harder and more stressful without his presence and input.

A. Roberts

Anonymous said...

My company just lost one of the largest class-action sexual discrimination lawsuits in corporate history. One component of the lawsuit was the discrepancy in pay between men and women. This lawsuit is just one example that women make less money than men for the same job.

In addition, several of my male colleagues have confessed to making between $25,000 and $40,000 more per year for the exact same job that I have.

Many of my male colleagues are able to support an entire family on their salary (wife plus two or more children), while my partner and I cannot live on just my salary.

Can you still say now that women make as much as men do for the same job?

Marty Nemko said...

Anecdotes are not averages.

Anonymous said...

Unreferenced allegations that can't be verified or fact-checked are not worthy of consideration as even anecdotal.

Stay strong, sir!

--proud and grateful mom who took a pay cut to work less so I could give time to raising my three young men

Anonymous said...

As a lay person I have had an interest in the meaning of what genius means certainly it is not within myself to speak as one. This is why I have continued to maintain a blog entitled "It Never Takes A Genius"a topic of discussion I have prompted as a caller to the Bill Wattenburg show of KGO radio 810. It was through your encouragement and suggestion that I begin a blog. I have done so. Because as a volunteer news talk show caller and online chess player I have written blogs on these subject matter and yes they are good for my soul; bottom line Norman Mailer will not have to move over for what I get published in as much as I enjoy writing as much as he does(legends never die when they pass on).

Louis Calabro said...

In the military men and women get equal pay--but men are killed in action far more often.

During indistrial accidental death, men are victims in more than 90%.

When you consider amputatins of arms, legs, loss of eys, black lung, etc. men byfar are the victims.

I think that should be seriously considered when discussing gender pay gaps.

 

blogger templates | Make Money Online