So 4/20 has been proclaimed by Gov. Bill Richardson to be a day on which we ponder “gender, ethnic and racial pay equity.” He signed an executive order at the end of 2009 demanding state agencies report on salary gaps and correct them.
According to the New Mexico Commission on the Status of Women, the state is ranked dead last in the nation for impoverished women with 20 percent of the New Mexico’s female population living in poverty. The commission also broke down average pay by race. The numbers are illuminating:
White
Women $29,500
Men $42,000
African American
Women $24,300
Men $32,400
Asian American
Women $33,100
Men $39,800
Native American
Women $23,200
Men $26,500
Other/Two or More Races
Women $27,600
Men $33,100
Hispanic
Women $22,100
Men $27,600
I had no idea the largest pay disparity would be among whites, and that it would be so striking.
Women in the U.S. make, on average, 77 cents for every dollar a man earns. Even when you take into account that women often occupy lower-paying professions such as teaching (you could say that these are low paying because they're largely populated by women, but OK), and even when you consider maternity leave, there's still a gap of 5-10 cents per dollar that economists can't explain except for gender.
This can't be attributed to education levels, either. Women are outpacing men in earning college degrees. Institutionalized sexism, yo. No good.
didn't you mean to say "European American"? Racial equity is right, humph!
was a semi-serious conversation about this making you feel icky? Jesus.
Check this out. In order of income:
White Men $42,000
Asian American Men $39,800
Asian American Women $33,100 Other/Two or More Races Men $33,100
African American Men $32,400
White Women $29,500
Other/Two or More Races Women $27,600 Hispanic Men $27,600
Native American Men $26,500
African American Women $24,300
Native American Women $23,200
Hispanic Women $22,100
