The so-called “gender pay gap” suggests that women are paid 78 cents for every dollar earned by men doing the same work. The broad, average incomes of men and women are compared without factoring in variables like job choice and hours worked total. Still, women are painted as victims of “the patriarchy” for no other reason than having a uterus.
But this is false. Women are not discriminated against when it comes to pay—not even a little bit.
This truth flies in the face of identity politics espoused by the left on a consistent basis, Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton giving new life to the fallacy continually, as she proudly “plays the woman card” this election cycle. Even Republicans are now apparently taking-up the false talking point: Ivanka Trump spoke about the so-called “gender pay gap” while addressing the Republican National Convention crowd. Disturbingly, she was met with wild applause from attendees.
Here are seven facts that directly dispute that women are victims of pay discrimination:
1. Women choose career paths which make less money.
As The Washington Post notes, a Georgetown University survey concerning the “economic value of different college majors,” revealed that women dominated nine out of the 10 least lucrative majors:
1. Counseling Psychology: 74% female
2. Early Childhood Education: 97% female
3. Theology and Religious Vocations: 34% female
4. Human Services and Community Organization: 81% female
5. Social Work: 88% female
6. Drama and Theater Arts: 60% female
7. Studio Arts: 66% female
8. Communication Disorders Sciences and Services: 94% female
9. Visual and Performing Arts: 77% female
10. Health and Medical Preparatory Programs: 55% female
On the flip side, men make up the majority of nine of the 10 most lucrative majors:
1. Petroleum Engineering: 87% male
2. Pharmacy Pharmaceutical Sciences and Administration: 48% male
3. Mathematics and Computer Science: 67% male
4. Aerospace Engineering: 88% male
5. Chemical Engineering: 72% male
6. Electrical Engineering: 89% male
7. Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering: 97% male
8. Mechanical Engineering: 90% male
9. Metallurgical Engineering: 83% male
10. Mining and Mineral Engineering: 90% male
Men, on average, will bring in more income than women if they enter careers which compensate more. This is not discrimination.
2. Men are more likely to choose dangerous careers, which generally compensate more.
According to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics offered in 2014, the top ten most dangerous jobs were those in the fields of logging, fishing related, aviation and flight engineering, roofing, refuse and recyclable material collecting, mining, truck driving and sales working, agricultural management, electrical power-line installation, and construction. All of these are male-dominated fields.
Again, women simply do not choose these jobs; this is not discrimination.
3. Female business owners, on average, earn less than half than their male counterparts.
As reported by CBS News, female business owners make much less than their male counterparts, mainly because “money is the primary motivator for 76% of men versus only 29% of women,” as found in a Rochester Institute of Technology study. “Women place a higher premium on shorter work weeks, proximity to home, fulfillment, autonomy, and safety.”
Of course, women bosses don’t discriminate against themselves because they are women.
4. Men work longer hours.
The statistic cited to express the supposed wage gap considers any job worked at least 35 hours per week as “full-time.” Obviously, not everyone works just 35 hours. And you guessed it, those who work more hours by choice are men, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
5. Women choose to leave the workforce for some time in order to raise children.
In one of the most obvious reasons for discrepancy, women are more likely to leave the workforce for periods of time to raise their children. Also, if and when women come back into the workforce, they seek less-demanding and more flexible jobs, which often pay less.
Women are not forced to do so, they choose to do so.
6. Female CEOs earn more than men.
Now, with all those variables factored in, women actually earn more than men in some cases. As reported by the Daily Mail in May, female CEOs earned more than their male counterparts in 2014 and 2015 by well over a $7 million average. “The data showed that the median pay for a female CEO was almost $18 million last year, while their male counterparts were worth on average a mere $10.5 million.”
Talk about a narrative fail.
7. Single women without children in major cities earn much more than men.
As noted by the Daily Wire in April, analysis of the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey reveals that “single, childless women earn more than their male counterparts of the same age in major cities across the United States.” Per Time:
[A]ccording to a new analysis of 2,000 communities by a market research company, in 147 out of 150 of the biggest cities in the U.S., the median full-time salaries of young women are 8% higher than those of the guys in their peer group. In two cities, Atlanta and Memphis, those women are making about 20% more. This squares with earlier research from Queens College, New York, that had suggested that this was happening in major metropolises. But the new study suggests that the gap is bigger than previously thought, with young women in New York City, Los Angeles and San Diego making 17%, 12% and 15% more than their male peers, respectively. And it also holds true even in reasonably small areas like the Raleigh-Durham region and Charlotte in North Carolina (both 14% more), and Jacksonville, Fla. (6%).