Women, Pay, and Equality

In 2010, women still make 77 cents to every dollar men make. We deconstruct the numbers, and look at the status of women today.

National Equal Pay Day came and went this week, marking the 110 more days women would have to work into this year to break even with the wages men made last year.

The ratio right now for women's wages to men's is 77 cents to the dollar. It’s a vast improvement over 57 cents to the dollar, a generation ago. But it’s still a yawning gap.

In this recession, where more women than men have kept their jobs, there are some changes underway to how the bread is being brought home to the dinner table.

The wage inquality remains, though. "Equal pay for equal work," remains the mantra.

Some attribute the gap to a broken, patriarchal system that still needs to be fixed. Others say it's choice and motherhood.

This Hour, On Point: Women, equality, and the workforce.  Guests:

Jessica Bennett, senior writer for Newsweek, where she covers cultural affairs, social trends, and women's issues. Her blog is "Equality Myth."
Read Jessica's piece on “Tracking the Wage Gap" at Newsweek.com
Caitlin Flanagan, writer for the Atlantic and the author of "To Hell With All That: Loving and Loathing Our Inner Housewife."

Nancy Koehn, historian and professor of business administration at the Harvard Business School.

See the Harvard Business Review's feature on "Women and the Pay Gap"