The gender pay gap has an enormous impact on women’s economic security over the course of their career. This effect is most strongly felt when they’re in their late 50s, as recently documented in the new report from the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA). PDF, produced by the Working Economics Blog team details how the gender pay gap varies by age. It gives a better sense of how this gap changes over the course of a woman’s life.
The WGEA’s findings indicate that the financial repercussions of the gender pay gap can accumulate substantially over a woman’s lifetime. At its peak in the late 50s, the gender wage gap is shocking. It climbs to a shocking gap of $53,000. This alarming gap has serious implications for the eventual financial stability of women, especially as they near retirement age.
The “Ages and Wages” report provides crucial insights into how and why the gender pay gap changes across different life stages. By analyzing various factors such as career progression, industry representation, and work patterns, the report sheds light on the complexities surrounding this issue. Women only continue to encounter hard hurdles as they move up in their professions. These barriers reduce their lifetime earnings potential relative to men.
The report places a particular emphasis on the peak gap, which occurred in the late 1950s. It discloses the extent to which the gender pay gap grows across life stages. Early career stages show a smaller gap, which gradually widens due to various factors including motherhood, caregiving responsibilities, and workplace discrimination. These factors exacerbate the tendency for women to be concentrated in lower-paying occupations and sectors of the economy.
Addressing these issues is key to reaching true gender equity in pay. Advocacy for policies that support equal pay, parental leave, and flexible work arrangements could help mitigate the financial obstacles women face throughout their careers.
