A great feminist called Bell Hooks once stated, “Feminism is said to be the movement to end women’s oppression.” Gender equality is a situation in which access to rights or opportunities is unaffected by one’s gender. Gender equality in the workplace can take many forms, such as unequal pay and promotion disparities, leading to discrimination and sexual harassment. One of the many issues in the gender pay gap is that it can cause an unhealthy work environment for those currently fighting to be equal to their peers.
Many barriers for women cause the gender pay gap and workplace equality, such as workplace culture, lack of female leaders, gender stereotypes, and societal expectations regarding gender roles. According to Pew Research Center, the gender gap in pay has remained stable in the United States over the past 15 years. In 2020 women earned 84% of what men earned.
Based on the Pew Research Center, that would be an extra 42 days of work for women to match what a man can earn while working in the same field. So that leads us to question how it affects productivity in the workplace for both men and women. Recent studies show that with ongoing gender pay gaps, there is less worker output leading to attendance decline when the perception of unfair pay practices occurs. A female worker that feels less valued because of a pay gap will most likely underperform. Male workers tend to disregard the situation or feel as if there is no issue when it comes to the gender pay gap at all.
When there is discrimination in the workplace, the employee will not take the extra mile to ensure the company is in good standing, or if little or no, incentive is given, the morale in the workplace will be low among the staff. Working under challenging conditions that can cause stress, mental health issues, and a shortage of employees without proper compensation, a contusive environment, and safe staffing ratios will have employees leaving altogether.
Looking at the gender pay gap in nursing. Women often dominate the nursing field, but according to Nurse Journal, men still make more than women in the nursing field. If you have two very qualified nurses with years of experience in the same specialty, that male nurse, on average, can make twice as much as the female rendering the same care.
One of the most impactful steps you can take is proactively addressing the issue with both men and women about gender equality and the gender pay gap. When both individuals work hard and have the same drive and ambition, their pay should be based on their performance and skills. Having equality and knowing your worth and value can improve the workforce environment.
Furthermore, there are several contributing factors to the gender inequality that prevails in workplaces, some of which are as follows.
As shown in previous studies, work experience plays an important role in the pay gap, and men usually have more work experience than women because they are present on the work front more often and can gain the necessary experience.
Although women, in general, are affected by the pay gap, reports show that women of color are often more discriminated against in comparison to other races and are paid significantly less than their colleagues. The level of discrimination can be viewed as racism based on the inequitable outcome.
Unlike fathers, women with children tend to take more time off from work to care for their family, which can negatively impact their jobs, lead to frequent absences from work, affect productivity, and create many problems, so although the woman is maybe more qualified to take the promotion, they are often overlooked by the employers.
Job location is another significant factor in the pay gap dilemma. Studies show that men do not mind traveling farther for better compensation in pay, whereas women will take the pay cut for less commute. No doubt, women having responsibility in the home leads to such decisions.
As a nurse, the gender pay gap relates to professional development as it affects motivation, productivity, and employee performance as a whole. Having the same degree, similar and sometimes more job experience than our fellow male counterparts, yet being compensated on a lesser pay scale brings about animosity. It decreases enthusiasm as well as created as well creates more stress at work.
The gender pay gap is a difficult gap to close and has existed for decades. One may think that choosing a different occupation having more work experience or education, not having children, or working at a particular location, among other strategies, world contribute to closing the gap. In essence, it may help some ways. However, it will not solve the problem. People in general, whether male or female, should simply be paid according to their worth, their overall experience, and how well their contribution affects the company’s growth in a positive way. This may help in reducing the inequality of pay between genders.
Although the gender wage gap has narrowed for many occupations in the United States, earnings for female nurses continue to lag. The nursing profession is dominated by women, but male nurses consistently receive higher salaries. In recent years the nursing pay gap has narrowed. However, income disparities still exist, especially for Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC). Women comprise more than 87% of the nursing workforce but earn approximately $7,300 less a year than their male counterparts. Female nurses continue to be offered lower wages despite their education level, age, certification, and experience. On average, female nurses make 90 cents per dollar earned by male nurses in the same roles (Jean, 2022). Certain nursing specialties are hardest hit by wage disparities, such as home healthcare, emergency/trauma, and pediatrics. Nurses experience smaller wage gaps in maternal/obstetrics, med-surg, acute care/critical, and mental health.
BIPOC nurses report higher median salaries and working longer hours as a result of higher rates of overtime, while their white counterparts report working fewer hours than other racial groups. The wage disparities for Black and Latina women are closing slower than for Caucasian and Asian women when compared to white males. In the past 30 years, the earning ratio for Black women has risen from just 59% to 63%. At this pace, the wage gap will not vanish for 350 years. Latinas fared worse earnings rising only 53% to 55%, making it take approximately 432 years for the pay gap to close (Jean, 2022).
Despite economic and structural discrimination, women nurses can utilize a few strategies to improve their wage equity, such as salary negotiations, mobilizing through unions, joining professional nursing associations, creating wage transparency, and changing workplace culture and employer policies regarding childcare. Feminist sociology theorists would agree with the national statistics that gender and race play major roles for female nurses, thus creating wages that go against equality and equity.
