In the Contra Costa Consolidated Fire Departments, women have an easier physical exam than the men do. The written and oral exams are the same. The starting pay, benefits and promotion opportunities are all equal among new hires. My point is that Contra Costa Fire is trying to make it easier for women to get hired, and they still cannot recruit an equal amount of women to men. Therefore, more men in the fire departments make it more likely that they will get hired and promoted, leaving the women behind.
Many careers are male dominated because men are better suited for the job.
Look at the Armed Forces, police departments, elected positions, even doctors. If women and men are to truly be equal, then equal numbers of men and women will graduate high school, college, get various degrees, receive the same amounts in the same careers and everything should be split 50-50. But if a career is dominated by men because women cannot perform the necessary tasks, then the women should not expect to have equal representation in that career. When I look in the classifieds, I guess I should mark up the pay 25 to 35 percent because I'm a male, and I should be earning more. And if I get a divorce, I hope I receive 25 to 35 percent more than my ex-wife does.