Men's Group

Major Nikon

(36,922 posts)

7. It's important to understand what the BLS is reporting

Sun Dec 29, 2013, 07:41 AM

Dec 2013

They are reporting what the raw gender wage gap is for weekly pay of full time workers (>35 hours). It doesn't take into account the actual number of hours worked, the amount of overtime worked, the risk of physical injury of the job or any other conditions of employment, union representation, gaps in employment, experience, tenure, the industry involved, or the preference for fringe benefits in lieu of pay.

Whatever portion of the gender pay gap that's due to illegal discrimination is almost impossible to measure, so economists factor out that which is relatively easy to measure. The Consad meta-analysis is the most comprehensive gender wage gap study we have, and puts the actual unexplained portion of the pay gap at between 4.8 and 7.1 percent. Within that 4.8 to 7.1% you have a number of other factors which are difficult to measure, one of which is illegal gender discrimination.

Additional portions of the raw gender wage gap are attributable to other explanatory factors that have been identified in the existing economic literature, but cannot be analyzed satisfactorily using only data from the 2007 CPS. Those factors include, for example, health insurance, other fringe benefits, and detailed features of overtime work, which are sources of wage adjustments that compensate specific groups of workers for benefits or duties that disproportionately affect them. Analysis of such compensating wage adjustments generally requires data from several independent and, often, specialized sources.

So when the question is 'how much of the gender wage gap is due to illegal discrimination?' The answer is, very little.

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Please help me understand the famous wage gap difference [View all] Joel thakkar Dec 2013 OP

it's not a contest. nt. NYC_SKP Dec 2013 #1

Thats all i want too Joel thakkar Dec 2013 #2

This message was self-deleted by its author NYC_SKP Dec 2013 #3

Thank you for Joel thakkar Dec 2013 #4

This message was self-deleted by its author NYC_SKP Dec 2013 #5

Still running away from real questions... Joel thakkar Dec 2013 #6

The study doesn't draw conclusions one might like for it to. It's just raw data. NYC_SKP Dec 2013 #12

Is it fair to pay someone more pay for more work? Major Nikon Dec 2013 #8

Women work ~93% as many hours as men in the survey. Not 77% NYC_SKP Dec 2013 #11

Is it fair to pay those represented by a union the same as those who aren't? Major Nikon Dec 2013 #13

My only experience is with construction and education. I would say "yes", however. NYC_SKP Dec 2013 #15

Men are more likely to be represented by unions Major Nikon Dec 2013 #18

You're right. This only explains about 40% of the pay gap. lumberjack_jeff Dec 2013 #14

Two cultural factors come to mind that I think are applicable to the matter of "choice". NYC_SKP Dec 2013 #16

I could believe that a men's club mentality may exist in some fields. lumberjack_jeff Dec 2013 #17

No it's not a contest, it's policy. lumberjack_jeff Dec 2013 #10

It's important to understand what the BLS is reporting Major Nikon Dec 2013 #7

"No" to all your questions. lumberjack_jeff Dec 2013 #9

My OP was reported Joel thakkar Dec 2013 #19