In a recent article for Axios, Courtenay Brown indicated that the pay gap between full-time working women and their male counterparts is now the narrowest on record. “The dynamic has been long in the making — a reflection of discrimination’s slow fade and other structural forces that have held women back on pay,” she stated. The foundation of Brown’s article was based on data shared by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which I went back and reviewed.
Unfortunately, there was some relevant information that Brown and publications like The New York Times and LinkedIn News, who also reported on this “gender pay gap shrinkage,” didn’t share with readers. I think it should also be noted that the time period in which the Bureau of Labor Statistics covered is 42 years, from 1979 to 2021. So when media outlets say, “the gender pay gap is shrinking,” they have not taken into account recent inflation and the mass tech industry layoffs which started in the fall of 2022.
Secondly, no one is reporting that the data also shows white women have experienced the largest earning growth over this 42 year time period, with a 44% increase, while Black and Hispanic women have only experienced a 31% earning increase during this same time period.
Lastly, all of these reporters also failed to mention that Asian women and men earned more than their white, Black, and Hispanic counterparts in 2021, with Black women earning 68% as much as Asian women.
To help you better understand why Asian and white women saw a significant increase in earning, we need to also take a look at their occupations. Women in the field of tech and chief executives saw the highest earnings. Historically, these women have been white and Asian. We have to also be cognizant that Black, Hispanic, and Native American women have faced and continue to face many barriers that prevent them from working in tech. According to Matthew Urin, women from marginalized groups struggle to break into tech, with Black women representing only 3% and Hispanic women under 2%. The barriers these women face include affinity bias, racial discrimination, bullying, and harassment.
Now when it comes to chief executive positions, especially with Fortune 500 companies, there are currently only TWO Black women in these positions; Roz Brewer – CEO of Walgreens, and Thasunda Brown Duckett, CEO of TIAA. So is the gender pay gap really shrinking for all women?
Now I don’t know about you, but when looked at in it’s totality, this data paints a very different picture than the one the media is trying to have us solely focus on.
Yes, over a 42 year period, the gender pay gap has shrunk, but let’s be clear, a significant gap still exists for Black, Hispanic, and Native American women, women who continue to fight for pay equity in the American workforce today.
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Dr. Carey Yazeed is a behavioral scientist, and the author of UnBreak My Soul: How Black Women Can Begin To Heal From Workplace Trauma. Dr. Yazeed is best known for creating safe spaces for Black women to exhale through her keynote speeches and workshops. Click here to learn how you can have her speak at your next event.
