Women graduates hit by wage gender gap

In this day and age this is very surprising. Disgracefull to be honest.

http://www.unison.ie/irish_independe...issue_id=13338

Top learners but still poor earners


Katherine

Donnelly

WOMEN graduates are getting a raw deal on pay.

They are taking home 11pc less than men despite superior educational performances.

The glaring disparity, highlighted by a think-tank report, is all the more extraordinary at a time when women make up about 55pc of third-level students. They also account for about 60pc of university graduates.

The inequity extends beyond normal salaries to rewards such as bonuses, which are more likely to be paid to men. These can be as much as 25pc more than those paid to women.

The gender-based pay differentials - many of them unexplained - emerge in a new study by the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) of 2,000 people who graduated in 2001.

While the overall pay differential is lower at graduate level than across the entire labour market (15pc), Dr Helen Russell, one of the report's authors, said this was a section of the labour force where they would least expect such a gender pay gap.

Previous research pointed to the arrival of children as a crucial event in creating a pay gap, but the ESRI says this is hardly a factor here as the most recent graduates don't have children.

The report notes that female graduates worked fewer hours per week (38) than male graduates (41) so the overall 11pc pay gap did not translate exactly into an overall hourly-pay gap.

However, the report states that weekly pay gap is important in terms of standard of living and control over resources.

Strong gender differences in occupations are revealed, with 26pc of males in the public sector compared with 41pc of females, typically in teaching, health and public administration.

Other findings include:

* Males more likely to have received employer sponsored training and promotion.

* Private sector female graduates were paid 8pc less per hour than male graduates. Within the public sector there was no significant difference in hourly pay.

* 42pc of male graduates received bonuses compared to 32pc of females, mainly due to men's higher concentration in the private sector.

* Men in the private sector received higher rewards for their qualifications, such as a first class honours degree, and for previous work experiences, which could not be explained by difference in personal, educational or organisational characteristics.

That gives no breakdown of the jobs they're doing. Computer Science grads are probably being paid substantially more than Arts students, and are far more likely to be male. I've yet to see a recent study showing bias that actually appeared to have been prepared correctly.

well in fairness women do less work they deserve less pay , look in any office and take note on how long women spend gossiping .

plus they are more likely to be a smokers and therefor need a 5min break every hour , dont get me started on if they get poled or are on the blob.:p

Load of rubbish. I've never seen women discriminated against in IT industry. women with ambition get better positions & therefore more pay & wopmen with less ambition get lower paid jobs - same as men.

Surveys like this are useless unless comparing sam jobs. Does male nurse get paid more than female nurse? etc...

Like it or not but when its difficult for women taking time off for kids to get promotions. However there are exceptions. I;ve seen women who work 2 day weeks do no work & gossip for 1.5 out of those 2 days & i've also worked with women who work from home on some days but still do full days work & have as much dedication as anyone...