|
Why Men Earn More
Why
Men Earn More: The Startling Truth Behind the Pay
Gap And What Women Can Do About It is Warren
Farrell’s latest book, and a fascinating read.
It has stirred vigorous and predictable debate
about what causes the ‘wage gap’ by which
the average female employee is said to earn
approximately 80 cents for every dollar paid to a
man.
But what I view as Farrell’s most
controversial point remains undiscussed. Namely,
should women use affirmative action that is,
government-mandated preference to
‘correct’ the free market’s wage gap
and make more money? Farrell, who is usually
associated with male empowerment, says
“yes.” He provides detailed advice on how
to do so, for example through tax-funded tuition
and other programs unavailable to men.
The first part of the book revolves around
refuting feminism’s explanation of the wage
gap: namely that it results from rampant
discrimination against women in the workplace.
Many arguments surrounding the wage gap are not
addressed, however. For example, women’s lack
of access to various factory jobs due to union
policies and attitudes. But addressing such
arguments is not the book’s purpose. Refuting
the specific feminist claim of discrimination is.
And Farrell ably accomplishes this goal on two
levels.
First, he cites research and extensive
government data to demonstrate that women who
compete for the same job often earn more than men,
not less.
In Table 6, Farrell compares the starting
salaries for women and men with Bachelor’s
Degrees in 26 categories of employment, from
investment banker to dietician. Women are paid
equally in one category; in every other category,
their starting salaries exceeds men’s. A
female investment banker’s starting salary is
116% of a man’s. A female dietician’s is
130%; that is, $23,160 compared to $17,680.
Second, Farrell analyzes the data that does
reflect a wage gap. But rather than seeing
oppression in the data, he perceives free
choice.
He argues: women commonly prefer jobs with
shorter and more flexible hours to accommodate the
demands of family. Compared to men, they generally
favor jobs that involve little danger, no travel
and good social skills. Such jobs generally pay
less.
Farrell rejects the conclusion of
‘discrimination’ because it does not
reflect the fact that female employees express
different preferences than males.
Men’s rights advocate Carey Roberts
www.ifeminists.net/introduction/editorials/2005/0112roberts.html
identifies one such difference. “[T]he
sheer amount of work. According to the Bureau of
Labor Statistics, full-time men clock an average of
45 hours a week, while women put in 42 hours. Men
are more than twice as likely as women to work at
least 50 hours a week."
Women’s lifestyle choices partly explain
their absence from certain professions, especially
dangerous ones. Roberts observes, “Men
represent www.bls.gov/news.release/cfoi.t04.htm
92% of all occupational deaths. Why? Because if you
look at a list of the most hazardous occupations -
fire fighting, truck driving, construction, and
mining - they have 96-98% male employees, according
to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.”
Farrell believes that women can make the same
salaries as men and enter “male
professions” if they are willing to make the
same employment choices. Accordingly, he offers
practical advice to women, much of which is
extremely useful.
Nevertheless, I balk whenever Farrell offers
advice on how to maximize government privileges at
the expense of men, who must compete at a
disadvantage and pay taxes for programs that
exclude them from benefits.
For example, under the heading “Get Hazard
Pay Without the Hazards,” Farrell tells women
to enter dangerous occupations. There they can reap
the same salary as men while avoiding comparable
risk because employers who are compelled to hire
women commonly shield them from risks. Thus,
Farrell explains, women get a ’death
professions bonus’ with not much more physical
risk than in everyday life.”
Using the military as an example, Farrell argues
that women “comprise approximately 15% of
active-duty military personnel, and 10% of those
deployed in Iraq.” Yet women constitute
approximately 2.6% of soldiers killed in Iraq; men
constitute 97.4%. Indeed, “in the Marines and
Air Force it’s a 100% chance of
returning.” That’s because a daughter is
“much more likely to choose, or be chosen for,
the military’s safer fields.”
(Of course, many women don’t wish to be
“shielded” from the job they signed on to
do. Others find it offensive for policies to assume
women can’t or shouldn’t work on an equal
footing beside men. Such women do not wish to
exploit those policies; they want to change
them.)
Farrell offers an explanation as to why
women’s safety becomes a priority.
“Whether…on an Alaskan fishing boat or in
the American military, men’s protective
instinct toward women, and women’s protective
instinct toward themselves (and children) keeps men
more disposable than women.”
In short, men will assume greater risk to
protect a woman co-worker. Farrell calls this male
protective instinct “touching.”
But quite another factor underlies the
situations that continue to make men “more
disposable”: government policy. Indeed, even
private industry commonly implements preference for
women’s safety out of fear of lawsuits for
harms such as exposure to chemicals or other stress
during pregnancy.
A government that discriminates on the basis of
sex or race violates a basic principle of justice.
The law must apply to every human being
equally.
This is the core of my disagreement: Farrell
believes in affirmative action and, so, advises
women to ‘game the system’ in order to
make money. I reject affirmative action and, so,
seek to eliminate the system in order to make
justice.
Nevertheless Why Men Earn More goes on my
reference shelf as a book I will quote and re-read
despite disagreements.
©2007, Wendy
McElroy
* * *
Wendy
McElroy is the editor of ifeminists.com
and a research fellow for The Independent Institute
in Oakland, Calif. She is the author and editor of
many books and articles, including her latest book,
Liberty for Women: Freedom and Feminism in the
21st Century. She lives with her husband in
Canada. E-Mail.
Also, see her daily blog at www.zetetics.com/mac
Contact
Us |
Disclaimer
| Privacy
Statement
Menstuff®
Directory
Menstuff® is a registered trademark of Gordon
Clay
©1996-2023, Gordon Clay
|
