Abstract
Throughout the global system there is a common inequality between men and women in the workplace. Although it has improved throughout evolution of society, there still remains an unequal balance of wage and income between males and females. Current literature suggests that the sex of an individual and their general income is correlated. Data from Statistics Canada’s Ethnic Diversity Survey (EDS) has been used to statistically expand on the literature in this article. Similar to the literature findings, the statistical findings also suggest that there is a strong link between gender and income. The data shows that the income of men is significantly higher than that of women.
Introduction
The income gap between males and females is one of the few things consistently holding women back from being economically equal to men. The statistics shown in the data from Statistics Canada’s Ethnic Diversity Survey display that based on 50.8% male respondents and 49.2% female respondents, males received an average income between $20,000 and $40,000 whereas females received below $20,000. Some people believe that these differences in productivity between males and females accounts for this income gap but there is an unexplained difference when discussing occupational classifications, which has led scholars to focus on the topic of sex discrimination and segregation in the workplace (Blau, Gielen, & Zimmermann, 2013, p.18). Researchers have also found that the relationship between the gender income gap and the geographic area in which individuals live has a significant impact. Alberta and British Columbia are used as examples to identify that a province’s income as a whole does not allow for observations on gender income specifics that display the disadvantages women face. The purpose of this paper is to outline that there are extensive gaps found between men and women relating to income, which are generated by gender discrimination, geographical areas which affect job availability, and the overall time men and women contribute to different sectors of their lives.
Scholars have found that segregation by sex is an important factor when comparing difference in pay for males and females in narrowly defined occupational categories (Blau, Gielen, & Zimmermann, 2013, p.20). This research explains that women employed in firms that hire only women earn less than average when compared to individuals employed in firms that employ men and women (Blau, Gielen, & Zimmermann, 2013, p. 20). In contrast, male-only firms tend to have higher than average pay for men compared to firms that employ both sexes (Blau, Gielen, & Zimmermann, 2013, p. 20). This displays a clear wage hierarchy in favour of men. For example, a study was analyzed which compared the gender wage gap between Canadian and Australian individuals. In 1985, it was found that on average women earned 33% less than men in Canada (Kidd & Shannon, 1996). In Australia women earned only 15% less than men (Kidd & Shannon, 1996). This displays that although the gender wage gap is universal, it is much more significant in Canada and is more of a predominant issue. The significant wage gap is often accompanied by a difference in treatment between males and females in the workplace. Women tend to be subjected to a diminished access to resources as well as low advancement or promotion opportunities, which assists their employers in explaining the lower wages for women (Merluzzi & Dobrev, 2015).
Researchers have discussed the limitations of female participation in the workplace and suggest that this may be caused by their relationship status and their spouse’s income (Bar, Kim, & Leukhina, 2015). The largest gender income gaps in Canada are reported to be in Alberta where women work an average of 35 unpaid hours each week (Lahey, 2015). This large amount of time taken to focus on unpaid work creates a barrier to women’s participation in paid work. This places a burden on many women who struggle to find part-time jobs with flexible hours in order to make a living and afford care for their children (Lahey, 2015). Although Alberta has a high level of wealth due to their oil and gas resources, since 1993 when they hit their highest period of equality it has deteriorated greatly (Lahey, 2015). Two decades after their highest period of income equality Alberta women still have not been able to regain their equal level of income (Lahey, 2015). Despite Alberta’s wealth as a province, women’s income has continued to fall behind the income of men in Alberta and the income of women in other provinces (Lahey, 2015). The geographic regions in Alberta have also shown possible explanations for women’s low-income trends (Lahey, 2015).
There have been noticeable differences between women’s average total income based on their regional economic development within Alberta (Lahey, 2015). In cities such as Calgary, women have more access to economic opportunities as they are much more urban settings (Lahey, 2015). Within Alberta specifically, there is a high attraction to looking for job availability in Calgary as it is much more integrated with the resource extraction industry allowing for higher income levels for both males and females (Lahey, 2015). Although both males and females in Calgary recorded as the highest income individuals in the province, this does not record that there still remains a gender income gap (Lahey, 2015). The gender income gap in Calgary has been noticeably larger than the gap found in more rural cities such as Edmonton (Lahey 2015). In 1967, women’s income in Calgary was a mere 40% of men’s (Lahey, 2015). By 2011 women’s income had risen to only 58% of men’s income (Lahey, 2015). This displays that there has been very little improvement with time (Lahey, 2015). In contrast, living in rural conditions, such as Edmonton, creates a deficit of job availability (Lahey, 2015). This particularly creates a large disadvantage for women as they experience gender discrimination and must also search for paid work with very few job opportunities in these rural conditions. The low-income levels found in Edmonton present a gender income gap but as time has passed the income gap becomes less significant (Lahey, 2015). Women in Edmonton in 1967 received 47% of men’s income level, and by 2011 were receiving an average of 65% of men’s income (Lahey, 2015). This shows a more distinct improvement in equality but still maintains a 35% income gap. The resource extraction industry in Alberta displays extreme amounts of gender inequality as it hires far more men than women (Lahey, 2015). These jobs consist of highly paid executives, managers, technical employees and skilled labourers, which maintain a largely under-represented portion of women (Lahey, 2015). In 2011, the average income of men working in Calgary was $30,000 more than women per year (Lahey, 2015). Similarly, the gender income in British Columbia compares men working full time averaging $51,700 per year whereas women earn just under $36,500 (Chasey, Duff, & Pederson, 2010).
Citizens of British Columbia as a whole enjoy high standards of living and are among the healthiest people in the world, but this province is also among the highest rate of poverty in Canada (Chasey, Duff, & Pederson, 2010). Child poverty in particular is extremely prevalent in British Columbia, but poverty of children is determined by parental poverty, more specifically by women’s poverty (Chasey, Duff, & Pederson, 2010). It has been found that 37% of lone-parent women are living in poverty, which is among the highest poverty rate (Chasey, Duff, & Pederson, 2010). This is significantly higher than the 10% of two-parent families that live in poverty (Chasey, Duff, & Pederson, 2010). These numbers display a clear gender income gap, which affects the standards of living for many women, as well as their children. Women’s unpaid work, care giving, low wages, lower pensions and lack of financial autonomy are a few of the structural factors that make them more vulnerable to low-income statuses (Chasey, Duff, & Pederson, 2010).
No matter the education level that women have achieved, they still receive a lower income than males with the same education. In 2005 it was recorded that when individuals with a graduate or professional diploma who worked full-time were compared, women earned only 96 cents for every dollar males earned (Chasey, Duff, & Pederson, 2010). Women with registered apprenticeships or trade certificates when compared to their male counterparts earned only 65 cents for every dollar men earned (Chasey, Duff, & Pederson, 2010). Along with maintaining paid jobs, women spend about one quarter of their time completing unpaid work such as household duties such as cooking, cleaning, care-giving, nursing, and caring for their children (Chasey, Duff, & Pederson, 2010). These duties make it difficult for women to focus on earning higher incomes as they reduce the number of hours available for them to be in the workplace (Chasey, Duff, & Pederson, 2010). Not only do women struggle to achieve an equal income as males, the time spent on household chores between men and women also outlines a substantial gap. Statistics Canada reports that households with two full-time working partners shared that 52% of women performed all the housework, 28% of women performed the majority, and only 10% shared household responsibilities with their partners (Chasey, Duff, & Pederson, 2010). Another noticeable factor of gender discrimination is found when looking at female-dominated sectors of paid work (Chasey, Duff, & Pederson, 2010).
Women are often overrepresented in part-time jobs that are poorly paid and create a feeling of insecurity for many (Chasey, Duff, & Pederson, 2010). The jobs that may be more fulfilling for women are often extremely female-dominated sectors of work such as health, teaching, religious, sales, and service (Chasey, Duff, & Pederson, 2010). These sectors of work are often very similar to the work that women do for free possibly in their homes or for surrounding communities (Chasey, Duff, & Pederson, 2010). Although these paid jobs may lead to a more satisfying lifestyle for women, they are another example of gender discrimination within the workforce that allows a gap to be placed between men and women.
It is essential for individuals in the working society to understand the importance of equality between men and women in order to continue the progression of an egalitarian system. The gender-income gap must be reduced in order for society to completely attain gender equality. To do this it must be a focused topic among all provinces, whether they are financially elite or not, as the provinces’ status as a whole does not signify the financial status of women.