Why are Women Earning Less than Men in Canada - Report Example

In Why are Women Earning Less than Men in Canada? In Why are Women Earning Less than Men in Canada? The concept of equal opportunities is very important for world democracy. Canadian government is supposed to create such conditions and regulations which would give equal opportunities to all Canadian citizens with no regard to their race, age, religion and gender. Canadian laws support equal rights and non-discriminatory practices; they guarantee that all people have the same chance to succeed. At the same time, it is not a secret that women in Canada still earn less than men. Various studies and governmental statistics show sad numbers which emphasize discrepancy between expectations and reality. Canadian women work as hard as men, but they earn less money for their work due to some specific reasons. This essay will explore why women are paid less than men because it is critically important to explain why such a situation still takes place and Canada and what should be done in order to promote equality and protect rights of women. Significance of the issue is supported by numerous studies which focus on wages inequality in Canada. According to the Gender Inequality Index (GII) measures, Canada is placed 20th in the list made up of 146 countries (Liwander, Haworth-Brockman & Pederson, 2013). This position shows that situation is Canada is much better than in other world countries; however, it identifies that the problem of gender inequality exists. It is particularly represented by the issue of lower wages paid to female employees. For instance, Boudarbat & Connolly (2013) find out that female graduates tend to earn 6% to 14% less than men in the beginning of their career after graduation. Cool (2011) underpins this statistical data comparing annual wages of full-time workers in Canada. Her study shows that the average male salary merited $62,600 in 2008 while female salary remained at the point of $44,700. Average hourly wages for women in Canada are $1-3 less than wages offered to male full-time and part-time employees. Hobbs & Rice (2013) specify the situation stating that the risk of unequal payment is even more common for Aboriginal women. Their research established direct links between growing poverty and wage disparity in Canada. According to Raphael (2011), the number of women in Canadian economy is constantly growing; however, most women still stick to traditional gender roles when they choose their occupation. Moreover, they have various duties at home which interfere with their job productivity. Overall, the studies stress that the problem of wages inequality and general female inequality is disturbing for Canadian society. Currently, researchers are seeking for the reason why promotion of equality laws and policies has only slight effect on coping with wage differences in men and women. There are many reasons why wage disparity is still common in Canada. First of all, division of all professions into male and female leads to the situation where females have limited potential when they choose male occupations. Historically, women are overrepresented in low-paid position and certain professional areas like teaching and nursing (Carole, 2013). The other group of factors, demographic factors, is usually associated with family status and children in family. Women who are married and have children set their work priorities in a different way. They have to pay enough attention to their family and children; most of them treat family responsibilities as more important compared to work obligations (Raphael, 2011). Finally, it is necessary to analyse job characteristics chosen by women. It is natural that some sectors have limited potential for material success. Considering that fact that all these factors exist simultaneously, their analysis will complexly explain why women still earn less than men. As well as in the other world countries, Canadian labour arena suffers from gender segregation. Salary depends on numerous factors which include job characteristics, skills required, the size of organization, the number of employees and industries. There are numerous perceived characteristics in some industries because they are still labelled to be male or female only. For instance, education and nursing are two spheres where women always occupy most places. According to Boudarbat & Connolly (2013), at least 20% of all women with higher education are employed as nurses, kindergarten, and elementary school or secondary school educators. These occupations guarantee significantly lower incomes than financial, economic or business industries. According to Carole (2013), even young and more educated people still show preferences typical for gendered thinking. Most male graduates work in the spheres related to computer programming, finance & audit and secondary school teaching. Further tendencies in this situation display that the number of female researchers in medicine and healthcare practitioners is increasing. Most women choose HR or consulting positions for their careers. The number of female professionals is increasing in law enforcement (Boudarbat & Connolly, 2013). The same results appear in the study by Raphael (2011), who states that women are less likely to be employed in the positions where they are required to be influential. Overall, women always top in the list of 20 poorest-paid jobs in Canada. Growing numbers of well-educated women change the situation only slightly. The number of female employees in building and construction as well as other hard industries does not exceed 10% (Carole, 2013). The choice of poorest-paid occupations as a career results in particular average statistics which is often manipulated in literature. Women who appear in male occupations have to cope with criticism of their male employees who often do not consider female colleagues seriously. It becomes the main reason why women still confirm to common gender stereotypes and select jobs where they are expected to be. Gendered thinking is a serious problem which often determines the way women think about their career. Stereotypical attitude to professions and scepticism related to female abilities to succeed in male jobs are harmful for women as they do not encourage them to choose an occupation they like. Demographic factors involve different causes which lead to wage disparity. Married women and those who have children are expected to take care about their family first. It is true that most of them stress the importance of family life over career development; in this way, they are less likely to pursue career goals rigidly (Raphael, 2011). According to Carole (2013), women tend to care more about non-material things related to jobs. To add to the point, they choose occupations which provide better balance of work and life. Jobs which are less related to stress, competition and appropriate work-life balance have lower compensation compared to stressful jobs with flexible working hours. Conflict between family life and work responsibilities is critical for career development and work performance. Women who have children earn less than women who have none because employers do not offer them responsible positions which presuppose complex responsibilities. Women who have children often ask for additional days-off or sick leaves related to their children’s conditions. Family life often reduces productivity and ambitions of women because they need to take care of their family members. Such women are not expected to work overtime, change jobs regularly or compete with their colleagues for promotion. They are good professionals but their main aim is to seek stability for their family. Overall, family status and children upbringing limits female potential at work and let them less flexible and risky in their decisions. They cannot compete with their female unmarried colleagues or men who are more aggressive, initiative and committed to their workplace. According to Liwander, Haworth-Brockman, & Pederson (2013), women are more likely to work part-time due to their family reasons. There are around 27% of women in Canada who work part-time and only 11% of men. Women choose to work part-time because it allows them paying more attention to their family and children. Overall, family matters when it comes to explaining why women earn less than men. Finally, women care about material benefits less than men. They often choose jobs which make them satisfied with the pace of work. Better-paid positions in corporate hierarchy make women face more requirements and give them more responsibilities. Not all women are ready to treat material position as a source of happiness. Carole (2013) supports this idea with the reference to current psychologists who state that women are more likely to choose jobs where they are paid less but they like what they do. This situation is not true about men who need more money, power and influence in order to dominate. It is interesting that women in relationships tend to choose education or health matters as their majors. They show more interest to typically female occupation than females who are single when they enter the university. Carole (2013) states that women value jobs which boost their self-esteem and foster their confidence. Men are twice less likely to consider this aspect of their position seriously; they value financial outcomes of their jobs more than any other factor. Women are more likely to ground their choices according to the guidance of their parents (Cool, 2010). Still, both men and women tend to choose occupations which result in expected material compensation. Women pay more attention to long-term goals; it is the reason why young women tend to earn less in the beginning of their career or make choices which presuppose success in the future (Carole, 2013). Differences between female and male expectations from their jobs become relevant cause for inequality in their wages. These expectations explain why women are less likely to build their career if they are satisfied with their current workplace. It also explains why men occupy many leading position in different spheres and industries. In summary, women in Canada still earn less money than men; however, the reasons why they learn less are clearly motivated. First of all, gendered thinking about career choices motivates women to work in the spheres where they are fully accepted. Even though more women are getting higher education in Canada, the number of female employees in technical professions is growing very slowly. The other factor which influences the issue is related to family status and children upbringing. Women who have families cannot compete with their unmarried colleagues who do not need to take care of their family. Long full-time working hours force women to take part-time jobs reducing their annual income. The third reason why women earn less is presented by the fact that they are less interested in money than men. They consider possible income when they choose their occupation; however, they value other non-material features related to their job. These reasons explain why women still earn less money. Even though Canadian government works hard to ensure that all people have the opportunity to earn equal wages, laws and policies can hardly change the situation now. Growing number of well-educated and career-oriented women can change the situation making challenging traditional gender roles were women are not perceived as being capable to compete with men. Currently, many women are still limited in their abilities because they have to cope with family responsibilities and social pressure. References Boudarbat, B. & Connolly, M. (2013).The gender wage gap among recent post-secondary graduates in Canada: a distributional approach. Canadian Journal of Economics/Revue canadienne déconomique, 46 (3), 1037–1065 Cool, J. (2010). Wage gap between women and men. Parliamentary Information and Research Service. Carole, V. (September 2013). Why do women earn less than men? A Synthesis of Findings from Canadian Microdata. CRDCN Synthesis Series. Hobbs, M., & Rice, C. (2013). Gender and womens studies in Canada: Critical terrain. Toronto: Womens Press. p. 17-29 Liwander, A., Haworth-Brockman, M., & Pederson, A. (2013). The Status of Women in Canada. Rethinking Women and Healthy Living in Canada, 15. Raphael, D. (2011). Poverty in Canada: Implications for health and quality of life. Toronto: Canadian Scholars Press Inc. p. 62-90 Read More