According to data from the Pew Research Center, women in California and the rest of the country brought home 85 percent of what men earned in 2018. The statistic is based on an analysis of the average hourly earnings for part-time and full-time workers in America. Using this estimate, women would have to work an additional 39 days to earn what men earned in 2018.
The wage gap in 2018 for adults aged 25 to 34 was slightly smaller than for workers who were at least 16 years old. For women whose ages ranged from 25 to 34 years, they earned 89 cents per each dollar that men within the same age ranged earned.
The 15-cent pay gap between the two genders in 2018 is an improvement from the 36-cent wage cap that existed 1980. For younger working women, the disparity between pay has grown closer by a similar margin over the years.
Women in 1980 who were aged 25 to 34 years old earned 33 cents less per dollar than men in the same age group; by comparison, the pay gap for that age group in 2018 was two times less at 11 cents.
There are multiple reasons why the pay gap still exists in the country. Experts assert that measurable factors like work experience, the amount of education obtained and occupational segregation all have roles. The reason for the narrowing of the gap is being attributed to the significant advances women are making in these areas.
An attorney who practices employment law may recommend certain legal options to clients who believe that they have been victims of wage discrimination. The attorney may notify the appropriate federal agencies and file lawsuits against employers who failed to payment employees properly due to their age, gender, disability or some other characteristic.