Male and Female Pay gap

I herd a statistic on the radio that said that women on average in the UK get paid 17% less than a male doing exctally the same job / work.


My question to you is - Do you think this is justified? I have herd many arguments stating that women dont deserve the same pay because they take maternity leave and cost employers thousands.

I have also herd people say " women dont concentrate as hard as men and are more easily distracted and get confused more easilly"

This is what i have herd it is not what i think, before you all start bitting my head off and calling me a sexist pig. I am just interested in what you guys / gals think on the matter!

[timwilky]

Currently women in the workforce are a bad idea.

Because they are prepared to accept such lousy salaries, they drag down overall salaries. If they stood up for their rights. (Note I do not use the word equal) Then employers would be forced to pay all fairly.

This is not a sexist view. They deserve the same rates for the job as men. It is just at present they are undercutting the rate and therefore all are getting a lousy deal.

Same work should equal same pay, thats my 2p worth, Might help me become a house husband too, all that riding time in the summer woohooooooo.

Originally Posted by timwilky

This is not a sexist view. They deserve the same rates for the job as men. It is just at present they are undercutting the rate and therefore all are getting a lousy deal.

Yep agree this. Women who perform the same role and are as productive should be paid the same. Those that dont shouldnt. Same rules for both genders.

I disagree with the number of time i hear women complaining that their careers get put back by children and that men dont suffer this. If there was the opportunity for men to do the same i'm sure plenty would just to be able spend those precious first few months at home. I certainly would.
As for the following years, there are plenty of fathers who leave early, arrive late, have to go home for emergencies because of children. I do.

Originally Posted by timwilky

It is just at present they are undercutting the rate and therefore all are getting a lousy deal.

Sorry but i have to disagree with that a little, it is the employer that offers the salary, not the female applicant that undercuts any male applicant to get the job, surely the same could be said of immigrant workers.

Originally Posted by Foey

Sorry but i have to disagree with that a little, it is the employer that offers the salary, not the female applicant that undercuts any male applicant to get the job, surely the same could be said of immigrant workers.

But women, in general, seem to be prepared to work for less. That's not saying it's right, but it just seems that way...

.

now dont get me started,

Pay shpould be the same.... regardless of race,sex or gender.

I dont agree with all this equal stuff IE we have to employ X amount of this sex/race because it has to be equel ...it should be


we employ this person because they are right for the job and are best suited.


rather than we need to employ this person to reach our goverment targets.

Originally Posted by Jelster

But women, in general, seem to be prepared to work for less. That's not saying it's right, but it just seems that way...

.

I'm still not convinced this is the fault of the women though, a lot of employers in this area are offering lower wages because at the end of the day they come out with the usual story........if you don't wanna work here there's plenty unemployed that do, my son was a victim of this although he has a better job now.

[BillyC]

Interesting debate... every individual is different, and is therefore worth different sums to an employer.

[CENSORED]
I have just censored the rest of my opinion... they're my thoughts and I really can't be bothered to engage myself in this discussion.

[timwilky]

Originally Posted by Foey

Sorry but i have to disagree with that a little, it is the employer that offers the salary, not the female applicant that undercuts any male applicant to get the job, surely the same could be said of immigrant workers.

Because employers know there are people out there who are prepared to accept less than the going rate then all are exploited. It will only be when we get full employment and employers are forced to compete for staff will things improve. why should employers give men salary increases when they know they can replace them with women at lower rates. If the women refused to accept the lower rate then they would be forced to pay equal. At present they are the architects of their own misery.

However. Equal pay is buncum. You get what you can command. We are all individuals and as such have strengths & weaknesses that employer either value and pay for, or use as a valid reason why you don't earn as much as the guy in the next office.