McCain opposes equal pay for women

[Heracles 417]

#6 you talk about me hating this country. NO. What I cannot stand is the stupid politicians in this country. People who talk ####, like car salesmen, to be elected. But fail to deliver anything to the people apart from line their pockets, and their buddies pockets, with cash. People who bring up irrelevant issues to divert attention from their incompetence.

Edited April 24, 2008 by Boo-Yah!

[Peikko 1,575]

I agree with Jenn, the onus should not really be on the employee to 'fix' gender inequalities as regards pay not the employee. Litigation is an expensive way to go about this, and the result is probably patchy at best.

Government is about power and money. It is not really surprising that it attracts those who wish to wield power and want money. That is a universal truth and doesn't just apply to American politicians.

[Jenn! 918]

Companies should have to report salary data. Why is the onus on the worker to determine whether or not he/she is being discriminated against? I don't know what anyone else makes around here.

Companies share salary data with each other, but its so no one has to pay more than the 'market rate' is.

The only protection workers have, AFAIK, are sources like salary.com but they report metrics based on broad aggregates. Salary.com won't tell me what my peers who sit around me make.

Which is why I am such a big fan of salary transparency. If employers won't allow it, I believe employees should openly discuss it. The taboo on salary discussions benefits only the employer.

I think that taboo will be hard to break. I know I would have a tough time asking someone what they make because I've always considered that pretty impolite except with very close friends and family.

Just seems that it would be less costly for everyone to make companies report to a bureau that will detect any salary discrimination - by gender or otherwise. Then penalties can be imposed and the situation can be rectified without evil lawyers and ludicrous court costs and stupid "general damages".

[Heracles 417]

This bill addresses those cases where a woman is paid less for the same work. It may not happen where you work or where I work, but if it does happen anywhere, this bill provides the victim with a 6 month window from her date of termination to lodge a complaint.

I don't think that's unfair.

The threat of litigation is a good reason why so many companies would rather setup overseas than here. I support equal pay but there should also be a bill limiting frivolous litigation cases with regards to employment.

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

Just seems that it would be less costly for everyone to make companies report to a bureau that will detect any salary discrimination - by gender or otherwise.

Or, simply require that all employers post salary information without any individually identifiable data online.

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

BTW at a budget meeting a few days ago, they told us what the total base pay for my organization is and the headcount. I figured the average and I am 32% below the average.

Very disappointing.

And I'm not even a woman!

[Jenn! 918]

BTW at a budget meeting a few days ago, they told us what the total base pay for my organization is and the headcount. I figured the average and I am 32% below the average.

Very disappointing.

And I'm not even a woman!

Sue for pain and suffering!

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

Well, it's an average. So it includes the CIO and her direct reports. I am sure they skew the mean quite a bit.

And then I'm much younger than most. I am sure that has a lot to do with it too.

I am just not sure.... if all those factors combined justify 32%. Maybe 15% or 20%.

[Peikko 1,575]

Presumably you can ask?

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

If the truth makes them look bad, they won't tell me. You know that.

[Peikko 1,575]

Maybe not, but if you present the figures in the way you have just now, you might make up 5-10%. What have you got to lose by asking them to review your salary? Will they fire you for being so audacious?

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

PH - no they won't fire me for asking...

[Peikko 1,575]

So, the worst that can happen is that they say "no, don't be ridiculous your pay is entirely in line with company policy"? By asking, at least you will feel as though you have done all you can rather than brooding on how unfair it is without a whimper to try to change the perceived disparity

Edited April 24, 2008 by Purple_Hibiscus

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

Women should be paid the same as men for equivalent jobs. There's no reason for that not to be the case.

Who is to say this is not the case.. I know a lot of women at work earning more than the males.

This is just another BS issue to divert the attention from congress, house etc doing nothing for the actual prosperity of this country. They other day a senator was arguing a cell phone ban bill on planes. Gezz what a pressing issue for hundreds of thousand of Americans loosing their jobs. And for the other's whose pay is shrinking.

I don't have the data to hand - but I think its well established that women get paid less for equivalent jobs than men.

[russ 1]

Forcing anything on a company will simply lead to layoffs. Thus Zero pay..

What year does she think it is? 1925. What about more women going to college than men? Why don't we change this to ensure equal number of men attend college in the United States. The country is going bankrupt and people are still obsessed with rights issues.

As for the rights issues, I think we all have a right to negotiate our salaries. That carries the risk of making good and bad choices.

Well, I think much of the disparity is related to three things.

First, what you are paid mainly depends on what you negotiate before you start. My style is to figure out roughly how much they are willing to pay, and then negotiate as much as possible. Whoever says a number first loses. Every HR department in the US has the strategy of offering you just enough to take the job, and then raises that roughly trail inflation. My wife will basically take whatever she is offered, no negotiation.

The second issue is time out of the workforce. If you take a few years off to take care of a family, your pay is going to end up being lower than someone who worked and gained experience during that time. If I were to leave the workforce for the next 5 years, when I returned, I would not expect my pay to be as high as someone who stayed at the job, gaining experience and promotions. Companies mainly pay salaried employees for experience and their track record. This has the same impact on single fathers.

Education is the last one. While there are more women it universities than men now, they are not necessarily studying the higher-paying fields. There are very few women in Math, Science and Engineering programs, while these tend to have the highest salaries.

I think gender bias is a minor factor after these three.