Reply #24: Trends take a long time to change [View All]

[SoCalDem]

Women only really entered the permanent job market in a big way during the 70's & 80's, and at that time, their bosses were mostly MEN, usually much older than they were. Their success was often determined by the whims of their bosses. Women got promoted and put into powerful positions less often than men, so of course they are still behind, because the base of the pyramid is still controlled by the "Good Ole Boy Network".

Union membership is a great guarantee that woman earn fair wages based on the job, not the gender or the boss' assessment of her willingness to "play ball", but we all know how unions are doing these days:(

Another reason is that many women's degrees are in fields that traditionally do not pay the "big bucks".. More women are branching out into higher paid fields, but if you compare a woman with a PHD in education vs a BA in engineering/finance/marketing/business-management for a well-connected man, I'd bet that the man will make more.

Another reason is that women who want a family, will usually take some time here and there during her career, to tend to child-related issues, and most men have not and still do not. Continuous "service" is something the good ole boys value when they consider entrance into the club.

As much as we like to think that things have changed, the Mad Men version of working women is not that far behind us..