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I
"stumbled" across this website
and had to respond to some content
I had found there... I am a
34 year old male who makes $72,000/year.
I am in software development,
and have many peers around me
- both male and female - who
make higher and lower salaries
than I. But some of the highest
paid individuals are of Indian
(India, not Native American)
and Asian descent.
Why is this? Shouldn't my salary
be the same? Am I being discriminated
against?
Fact of the matter is, these
people outperform me in skill-level,
knowledge, and application of
themselves. Because of this,
they deserve to earn more than
I. Because of this, I don't
make as much as they, nor do
I deserve to receive a salary
I haven't earned. Some of the
women are the best at what they
do, especially the one's who
are single as they can devote
the necessary energy and time
to the project that is required
by the company's business direction.
I - on the other hand - have
a family and thus cannot dedicate
the long hours required by the
organization. Should I be compensated
anyway for the time I can't
give? Is this truly equitable,
and if so, by what standard..
moral, ethical, or otherwise?
The excerpt below was taken
from the website:
"Why
is There a Wage Gap?
The wage gap exists because
most women and people of color
are still segregated into a
few low-paying occupations.
More than half of all women
workers hold jobs in sales,
clerical and service jobs. Studies
show that the more an occupation
is dominated by women or people
of color, the less it pays.
Part of the wage gap results
from differences in education,
experience or time in the workforce.
But a significant portion can
not be explained by any of those
factors; it is attributable
to wage discrimination. In other
words, certain jobs pay less
because they are held by women
or people of color."
Help me with the reasoning...
Because "a significant portion
can not be explained by any
of those factors", it follows
that "it is attributable to
wage discrimination"? Everything
I have mentioned above from
actual observation and evidence
contradicts almost all of what
has been set forth in this excerpt.
What is the empirical evidence
for the conclusions above?
Sincerely Anticipating a Response,
John
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Thanks
for your note to FEMINIST.COM
and for your "sincere concern."
I had some trouble following
your reasoning and, therefore,
may be misunderstanding your
point, but it seems to me that
you are arguing that you are
an exception to the rule-i.e.
you are a white male who gets
paid less than non-white male
and female co-workers. You go
on to admit that you are less
qualified and not as good as
a worker, and ask if you should
be punished because you don't
have the same freedom in your
schedule to give more time.
As for this point--the problem
in this instance, isn't so much
the workplace, but what happens
out of the workplace. To be
more specific, the workplace
remains un-family friendly,
therefore, it almost punishes
people who have out of work
responsibilities--less energy,
children, elderly parents, etc...--and
rewards those whose primary
committment is their jobs. This
is the fault of individual workplaces--the
majority of workplaces, not
properly weighing their employees
lives.
The other problem you mention--actually
just seems to be a confusion.
The piece that quote specifically
talks about low-wage jobs and
given that you make $72,000--
more than double the average
American--one, you personally
don't qualify as a low-wage
worker and, two your industry--software
development doesn't qualify
as a primarily female occupation.
Contrary--you are in a male
dominated field, making much
more money than the average
American. You may be working
less than your co-workers, but
one, it doesn't sound like you
deserve it, and two, are clearly
the exception to the rule. What
this quote is meant to underscore
is that if you look at any profession
that is more than 70% female--it
is categorically--yes this is
a generalization--speaking a
low-wage job (i.e. less than
$25,000 a year). Note, again
that this is an average. Conversly,
if you look at professions that
are 70% male (i.e. the tech
industry, capitol finance, etc...)
it is a high-wage job.
I hope that my "sincere concern"
for those--male and female,
white and black and Indian--who
are really stuck in low-wage
jobs is clear.
—Amy
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