Immediate Release
April 1, 2019
Press Contact: [email protected]
On Equal Pay Day, Make Women & Men Aware of How Decisions Impact Earnings
Statistics painting picture of rampant discrimination are misleading
Washington, DC — Carrie Lukas, President of Independent Women’s Forum, released the following statement ahead of Equal Pay Day, which lands on April 2:
“Equal Pay Day is a sad attempt to convince women that American society is overwhelmingly sexist, rather than the land of opportunity. The premise behind Equal Pay Day is simply false. The ‘wage gap’ statistic that underlies Equal Pay Days designation doesn't compare the wages of a man and a woman performing the same job. It ignores industry, profession, work history, even the number of hours worked, all of which help explain why, on average, men earn more than women. When these factors are taking into consideration, the wage gap shrinks to just a few cents.
“Rather than a day to try to convince women that they are victims of rampant discrimination, far better to encourage women and men to be aware of how the decisions they make impact their earnings potential and career. Yet we shouldn't try to shame women who opt for jobs that they find personally rewarding or offer the work-life balance they want, even if that means lower pay. Women and men should be free to pursue their own vision of happiness, and ignore misleading statistics and politically-motivated holiday designation, which is all Equal Pay Day is.”
Learn more about the real drivers behind the pay gap from Independent Women’s Forum’s takeaways document.
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Independent Women's Forum is dedicated to developing and advancing policies that aren’t just well intended, but actually enhance people’s freedom, choices, and opportunities.