Opinion

What Is US Pay Equality Like in 2022

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It’s been common knowledge since commerce began that some groups get unfairly paid less than others.  As deeply discussed as this is, and as many times as people will try to discuss solutions and find ways to correct it: the biases in pay differences are still real.  Here are the top things to consider in pay and why a pay equity analysis of any business will bring to light changes that should be made.

What Is US Pay Equality Like in 2021?

When It Comes To Race

Ethnicity is the most apparent unspoken bias when it comes to paying gaps.  Although the ranks have been narrowing some, as of 2020, the gap between black and white men in the same job is around two percent.  The numbers get worse for black women, who are statistically paid less than any other group.  It may take the average black woman seventeen months to make the same amount of money that a white man makes in a year, regardless of education or skills.

Considering Gender

That point brings up gender, which is the most discussed part of the pay gap in America.  When looking at the median income, women make eighty-one cents to every one dollar a man makes.  Many attribute this to the fact that jobs that women excel in, or can avoid having to fight biases to enter, often pay less and are considered less skilled work despite being more physically draining than most office jobs.  When it comes to income differences for the same position, the margins had slimmed out to women making just one to two percent less, a marked increase to when this was left more unchecked.

Looking At Disabilities

In recent years, the pay gap for people with disabilities has shrunk immensely when considering people with the same role.  Unfortunately, the median income for people with disabilities is still thirteen percent less on average than people without disabilities.  A lot of this can be attributed to hiring practices, and the kinds of roles people with disabilities can work.  This type of worker is statistically an older group. However, there are tons of young people with disabilities as well, and the group as a whole is often left on the backburner when companies are hiring despite having a wealth of knowledge.

Educational Gap

Although hours in a classroom don’t directly translate into abilities or the experience many jobs need, there is a gap between what formally educated people receive.  Even completing your GED, or graduating high school, can mean an increase in your income by eight thousand dollars a year.  This amount grows again if you have a college education and will continue to grow from there.

Although the job market has made getting hired based on your educational background more difficult, you’re still more likely to make more money if you’ve had more hours in the classroom.  Unfortunately, this means that people who have ten to twenty years of hands-on experience may be overlooked and underpaid compared to someone who completed a couple of years in college for the same position.


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