Equal Pay for Less Work? No Thank-You
I have just read one of most demeaning things toward women since Larry Summers ventured to open his mouth about girls and boys.
In a cleverly written piece which purports to be even keeled toward both men and women, Professor Roy F. Baumeister, Professor of Social Psychology at Florida State University, states the following:
Wow. Equal pay for less work....because our poor little women just aren't motivated to work enough to earn it the way men do?
How about we start with equal pay for equal work, Professor?
According to a 2009 article in Psych Central, "The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics cites women working 41 to 44 hours per week earn 84.6% of what men working similar hours earn. It gets worse as women work longer hours — women working more than 60 hours per week earn only 78.3% of what men in the same time category earn."
Although I don't believe it to be true, let's suppose men are at the workplace more hours than women. Could it have anything to do with the fact that women continue to have the greatest burden of caring for children, putting food on the table and keeping a house relatively free from germs, dirty socks and fast food plates?
Continuing with the (likely erroneous) supposition that men are at the office more hours than women - Is there anyone who doubts that women are accomplishing the same amount (or more) work per week than their peer men?
Women less motivated? I don't think so.
I am not a "feminist" nor a "man-hater" but my hat has always been off to the many superwomen I encounter year after year. These super women work their tails off at work putting in long hours and performing random miracles. At the same time, they are often raising multiple children from infancy though teenhood. These superwomen do not need to be handed equal pay for less work. They are doing the same work for less pay and usually, I might add, with less complaint.
Please, Professor, don't try to do us any favors. We don't want your condescending hand-out.
In a cleverly written piece which purports to be even keeled toward both men and women, Professor Roy F. Baumeister, Professor of Social Psychology at Florida State University, states the following:
Likewise, I mentioned the salary difference, but it may have less to do with ability than motivation. High salaries come from working super-long hours. Workaholics are mostly men. (There are some women, just not as many as men.) One study counted that over 80% of the people who work 50-hour weeks are men.
That means that if we want to achieve our ideal of equal salaries for men and women, we may need to legislate the principle of equal pay for less work. Personally, I support that principle. But I recognize it’s a hard sell.
Wow. Equal pay for less work....because our poor little women just aren't motivated to work enough to earn it the way men do?
How about we start with equal pay for equal work, Professor?
According to a 2009 article in Psych Central, "The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics cites women working 41 to 44 hours per week earn 84.6% of what men working similar hours earn. It gets worse as women work longer hours — women working more than 60 hours per week earn only 78.3% of what men in the same time category earn."
Although I don't believe it to be true, let's suppose men are at the workplace more hours than women. Could it have anything to do with the fact that women continue to have the greatest burden of caring for children, putting food on the table and keeping a house relatively free from germs, dirty socks and fast food plates?
Continuing with the (likely erroneous) supposition that men are at the office more hours than women - Is there anyone who doubts that women are accomplishing the same amount (or more) work per week than their peer men?
Women less motivated? I don't think so.
I am not a "feminist" nor a "man-hater" but my hat has always been off to the many superwomen I encounter year after year. These super women work their tails off at work putting in long hours and performing random miracles. At the same time, they are often raising multiple children from infancy though teenhood. These superwomen do not need to be handed equal pay for less work. They are doing the same work for less pay and usually, I might add, with less complaint.
Please, Professor, don't try to do us any favors. We don't want your condescending hand-out.
posted by Beth N. Carvin at 12:39 PM
7 Comments:
Good heavens! Regardless of the male-female issue (which is inappropriate enough alone), the professor certainly seems to be working under the misapprehension that more hours equals greater output or better quality. If one person can get their work accomplished to the required degree of quality in 40 hours a week, and someone else is taking 55 hours, it could be that the person taking 55 hours is struggling in the job or ( say it ain't so) wasting their time during normal working hours. Regardless of gender or any other characteristic, I'd rather have the person getting the job done in normal hours. I am glad this professor is in academia and not taking up space in the world of business.
Follow up tommy earlier post. I just read the entire article/address. It is very interesting, but seems to have many leaps of faith and inconsistencies in the logic. Since this was an address and not an article published in a peer reviewed journal, it may not have been subject tot the usual challenges. I might research additional published articles by the professor and see what additional research he has performed to support some of his views. Just one example of a leap to conclusion... He uses the example of music and says that there are many technically accomplished musicians of both genders, but since women are very underrepresented in jazz music, which requires improvisation, then his conclusion is that men are more creative. I could just have easily said that there are many technically accomplished dancers of both genders, but since there are more women in modern dance, which requires improvise nation, therefore women must be more creative. I would never say that because I believe there are examples of creativity from both genders in many fields, and the fields they choose for their creative outlets may be based on many factors. I need to read more of his writing to understand more. However my previous comment about getting work accomplished more efficiently still stands ....
Typos in both my posts are the fault of my iPad!!!!
Surely there would be no reason to compare. Women has a remarkable and a multiple responsibilities,also the men has own character. :D
I agree with chris!!
Analysis by Jackie is really good...overall you have great website...
great discussion guys...I love the topic and your unique blog!
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