The 'Wage Gap' Will Forever Be a Myth

I'm looking forward to our discussion.1. The resolution cannot be proved. We are debating the resolution "The 'Wage Gap' Will Forever Be a Myth. " To prove this statement true, Pro not only must show that the 'Wage Gap' is a myth today, but that it will be a myth forever, throughout the entire future history of human civilization. To prevail, Pro must affirmatively show that there is no conceivable set of circumstances under which a Wage Gap could ever develop. This is, like proving a negative, an impossible task. This point alone is sufficient to justify a vote for Con.2. Pro has admitted the existence of a Wage GapMy opponent has already tacitly admitted that the Wage Gap exists. He concedes that "women often have jobs that aren't as high-paying as men do. .. because they simply want to. " Women often "choose more flexible jobs" for family reasons, and "choose to work family-friendly, safe places with lower pay. " Sure! True! And this creates a Wage Gap! It seems my opponent does not in fact want to debate about the existence of a Wage Gap, but the reasons for the Wage Gap. The Wage Gap is a very simple concept - it's just the difference between the median income of a full-time, year-round working male ($47,715 in 2010), and the median income of a full-time, year-round working female ($36,831 in 2010). ($47,715 - $36,831) / $47,715 = .2260. [1] That's a difference of $0.226, which is why people say women make $0.77 or $0.78 on the dollar of what men make. It's a simple, objective, verifiable fact. The Wage Gap exists. Why? Good question! But not the question framed by the resolution. The resolution is that the Wage Gap is a myth, and I have conclusively demonstrated that it is a fact.3. Wage discrimination against women is a significant factor in the Wage GapAs my opponent rightly notes, some portion of the Wage Gap can be explained by individual lifestyle choices. Not all personal choices are measured by the census data - because we're talking about full-time, year-round workers, we're excluding stay-at-home moms, women who work less than 35 hours in a flex-time position, teachers and seasonal workers, for example. How much of the Wage Gap is due to life choices? Best estimate, across many studies - about 60%. [2] [3] Leaving aside the question of structural sexism reflected in these choices - why are women the ones expected to sacrifice career for family? do women face educational discrimination that limits their options? etc. - that still leaves 40% of the Wage Gap attributable to sheer discrimination. [4] That's just over nine cents - but whether the specific amount of the Wage Gap attributable to discrimination is a dime, a nickel, or a penny, wage discrimination based on gender is unacceptable. There is substantial evidence that women are paid less the same work based solely on gender:-Even if time off for family affects earnings later in one's career, that doesn't explain gaps at the beginning of a career. But still, newly trained male physicians in 2008 made $16,819 than newly trained female physicians, even after controlling for hours, specialty, practice, etc. [5]-Life choices can't account for experimental conditions. Researchers at Cornell found that in a laboratory experiment, equally qualified job candidates who were identified as mothers were thought of as less competent and were recommended lower starting salaries. [6]-Life choices don't explain the fact that discrimination is reduced when women are making decisions. In my own profession, female lawyers made 83.0% of men lawyers’ salaries in 2014 - But when women were more present on compensation and governance committees, the gender pay gap was reduced. [7]-CEOs are a labor market unto themselves - hiring and compensation decisions are driven by corporate boards and generous offers are made to attract the best talent. And yet female CEOs face the largest earnings gap of any profession - about 31 cents. [8]-Even though some women may pursue lower-paying fields, that doesn't explain the pay gaps within professions. Note examples above - doctors, lawyers, executives. These are driven, intelligent people who have made a decision to pursue high-powered, time-intensive careers. The Wage Gap persists across nearly all professions, including those dominated by men and those dominated by women. [9]My opponent says that there are "too many variables in play" to attribute the Wage Gap solely to discrimination - and I agree. But there is significant evidence that discrimination does drive a meaningful portion of the Wage Gap. We should not ignore that evidence. My opponent also makes a brief economic argument - that if the Wage Gap were real, employers would simply hire all women. It's a bit of a silly argument - it depends on a quasi-religious belief in homo economicus, the unbiased rational wealth-maximizer, a not-quite-human species unobserved outside of Ayn Rand novels and Austrian spreadsheets. To this argument I counter that this simplistic model of human behavior is wrong for the same reason that the free market failed to end segregation at lunch counters - in real life, people's biases, values, and cultural identities always matter more than marginal revenue boosts. How much are employers willing to spend, even unconsciously, to maintain the systems of male power that permeate society? Looks to be roughly nine cents on the dollar. [1] . http://www.census.gov..., Table A-6. [2] . http://blog.dol.gov...[3] . http://www.washingtonpost.com...[4] . http://www.slate.com...[5] . http://content.healthaffairs.org...[6] . http://gender.stanford.edu...[7] . http://www.catalyst.org...[8] . http://www.iwpr.org...[9] . http://www.bls.gov...