Women provide an important part of the American work force. While studying American labor and labor economics at Cornell University’s School of Industrial Labor Relations, I wrote one of my first major research papers on the disparity of pay between men and women.
Today, while watching the Today Show, I enjoyed hearing New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand speak about the importance of women in the American labor force. She referred to the famous Rosie the Riveter campaign, encouraging women to join the work force during WWII.
Senator Gillibrand sees the need for women to take vital roles in today’s workforce, especially in politics. She noted that she is one of few women, 17 female senators, in today’s United States Senate. She mentioned that she and her female colleagues work well together, even when they are on different ends of the political spectrum.
When I wrote my labor economics paper in 1983, I focused on professional women – lawyers and doctors, concluding that female professionals did not earn comparable salaries to men. Unfortunately, 28 years later, American women in the work force, still do not command equal pay as their male co-workers.
When I went on college visits with my daughter this summer, I noticed that the college statistics show that most colleges have a majority of female students. I wonder, what it will take to equalize the pay of American male and female workers.
I will continue to explore this topic in future blog posts. I hope that you will provide me with your insight and comments on this important topic. I don't think Rachel will be studying labor economics in college, but it is unfortunate to think that she would reach similar conclusions about workplace pay disparity as I did in 1983.
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