The “gender pay gap” is a big deal for some folks, who worry about women earning less than men.
Democrats, for example, often talk as if the issue were about women doing the same jobs as men but getting paid less. But that’s not what the stats about wage differences by sex (that women earn, in America, 78 percent of what men earn) actually track.
Women en masse tend to earn less because it just so happens that women, in general, work in the paid labor market fewer days and hours (often taking more time off to birth and raise children) — as well as choose lower-paying careers — than men.
It’s about time and productivity. And the choices we make.
Melinda Gates is concerned about something similar to this “wage gap.” She is interested in task dissimilarities between men and women. She’s not a nut about the subject, though. In her contribution to the annual letter of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, she notes that America is the most equal regarding a statistical paid/unpaid “gender gap.” Women work more time in unpaid labor elsewhere, globally (including Europe) than do men elsewhere, globally.
Funny, I’ve never heard any “We’re No. 1” chants, congratulating Americans on the tiniest gender gap on the planet.
Certainly, we don’t need a new program to help women catch up with men … but for all to be equally free to catch up with their own dreams. Around the world workers need more innovation and, well, free-market capitalism — to free women (and men) from drudgery.
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11 replies on “Paid/Unpaid Labor Gap”
This blog was… how do you say it? Relevant!!
Finally I have found something which helped me.
Kudos!
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You ought to take part in a contest for one of
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Truth is not sufficient evidence to prevent a specious and divisive political argument. Progressive and elitist arguments need not deal with the facts as they actually argue for the utopian impossible, and to ultimately deny human liberties and nature.
Gender pay gap is discussed by “progressives” in a manner Not surprisedthat reveals their lack of real market processes.
Progressives are keenly aware of real market processes, they hate them and seek to modify and eliminate them. They refuse to understand that voluntary economic activities between individuals is human nature, the basis of progress and betterment of the whole, and cannot be eliminated..
Aw, this was a very good post. Taking a few minutes and actual
effort to make a good article… but what can I say… I procrastinate a lot and don’t seem to get nearly anything done.
You can use statistics to say anything. This is exactly the same E‑3 math that the Labor Dept. uses to mask our record high unemployment. You just don’t count the unemployed in the workforce anymore. The situation with the Gap is done in reverse for the same effect… to skew the numbers toward a political point. Here, the women that don’t work outside the home are counted right along with those that do, thus lowering the wage figures for all. Cheap, stupid manipulation by people unconcerned with the truth and believed by trusting souls who are to lazy to look for it…
In truth we could use more free-market capitalism her at home.
Regulations are killing us economically.
That should be HERE at home.
My kingdom for an edit button.
They are comprised of a fabric cellulose acetate.
Great comments.