 |
1/16/05
COMPENSATION Despite gains in the boardroom, women still have a long way to go before achieving parity in their paychecks. New statistics collected by the National Association for Female Executives suggest that, women continue to make less than men. The information, published in the group's fourth quarter NAFE Magazine, covers a variety of industrial and public sectors, from accounting and advertising to media, science, sales, and technology. In some cases, the gap between the paychecks of males and females varies slightly. In most cases, however, the gap is huge, with women taking home $20,000 less than their male counterparts. The NAFE survey also shows that the gender pay gap grew last year. For example, women who worked full time in 2003 earned 76 cents for every dollar earned by their white male peers, down from 77 cents in 2002. Betty Spence, the president of the association, said that lost penny represented hundreds of lost dollars. ''A penny not earned is a penny not saved,'' she said. ''Say you made $500 per week. The guy next to you working the same job socked away $444 by years' end, just because of that one lost penny.'' The numbers are startling. Take accounting, for example. Information on median salaries compiled by NAFE from statistics published by the Institute of Management Accountants shows that women accountants with 20 or more years experience earned $85,375 last year. When researchers looked at the earnings of their male counterparts, they found the men took home $119,628. Even when the salaries of new recruits in the accounting profession were compared, men with one to five years experience earned more than women with the same level of experience. For example, new female accountants were paid $72,534 last year. The men earned $94,314. In healthcare management, a field where women have made significant gains, they also lagged in pay. For example, female chief executives were paid $152,673 last year, according to data from the Medical Group Management Association. Male chiefs earned $195,783. In addition, female anesthesiologists earned $64,000 less than male anesthesiologists, women scientists doing medical research earned 71.3 percent of their male peers' income, and women allergists or immunologists earned $190,983 last year compared to $254,289 earned by their male peers. By contrast, female neurological surgeons brought home $337,031 in total compensation while their male counterparts earned $487,000. Even in library science, a field long dominated by women, they took home less. A head librarian earned $63,117, but a male head librarian made $6,000 more. However, female reference librarians with 10 to 14 years experience took home $46,937 -- about $100 more than males with the same job. In addition, male and female reference department heads each earned about $65,000 per year. But as women began to rise in the field, the gap widened, according to the NAFE report. It revealed that female associate directors earned $96,899 last year while their male counterparts brought home $98,732. And, in the nonprofit world, another area where women have long dominated managerial and frontline work, men forged ahead financially, although the pay gap narrowed. The average salary for female nonprofit chief executives was $84,070. Their male counterparts earned $84,825. Women in administration earned $55,000 compared to the $88,400 males took home. Pay for fund-raisers and development specialists came closest to parity. Women in those jobs earned an average of $70,000. Men earned $70,297 per year, a difference of about $300. Additionally, lobbyists for nonprofit causes took home $73,907 if they were women. Men earned $96,655. Economists have long argued that the pay gap is partly due to caregiving. Since women are more apt to drop out of the workforce or take part-time jobs after they have children, they tend to earn less, overall, than men. NAFE found that career preparation is also a factor, but not always. The association reported that women are still pressured to choose traditional female careers that pay less than careers in science, medicine, mathematics or technology, which pay more. NAFE also found that although women in science or technology earn more than their peers in other fields, they still don't earn quite as much as the men with whom they compete. NAFE said women in vocational fields are also steered toward careers like cosmetology, day care, and medical transcription rather than plumbing, electrical work, or carpentry that pay twice as much. But better education doesn't necessarily mean higher earnings for women. When the organization looked at the salaries of administrative and clerical workers, it found that women also lagged behind their male counterparts in those fields. For example, female secretaries and administrative assistants earned $27,612 in 2003. Males, by contrast, brought home $29,796. NAFE also reported that far more women are going on to college, but they are not entering fields that guarantee higher earnings. ''When women major in male-dominated areas, the wage gap narrows,'' said NAFE. One example: Asian-American women who major in the sciences and engineering. They earn more than white, black or Hispanic women. In fact, they make 75 percent of what while males earn.
BENEFITS US workers value free time over cold cash, so says Salary.com, the online Massachusetts research firm that tracks pay, compensation, and benefits. The company polled 4,600 workers from a cross-section of industries around the country recently and found that 39 percent would rather have more time off than a $5,000 raise. Last year, 33 percent chose time off over more money. Tim Driver, senior vice president of consumer products at the website, believes the results underscore the degree of concern younger workers are placing on time off. ''Workers are saying they need a break from the stresses caused by increasing hours, reduced staff and the push for more productivity,'' he said. ''We can also conclude that a new generation has priorities that differ significantly from those who preceded them.''
DIVERSITY US workers whose first language is Spanish can now find out about their workplace rights by logging onto a new website, http://www.eeoc.gov/es/. Sponsored by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the site was launched last week as part of the government's push to expand its reach to include Latino workers, one of the country's fastest growing ethnic groups. The website offers information about training, seminars, policies and federal laws that protect employees from sexual harassment, wage bias, religious and racial discrimination and bias against the disabled. Said EEOC chairwoman Cari M. Dominguez, ''The new website will make key information about employment rights and responsibilities more easily accessible to Spanish speakers and people with limited English proficiency.'' Diane E. Lewis can be reached at .
|
|
||||||||
|
|
|
E-Mail This Article
