Yet, they are not getting the pay and benefits commensurate with the work they do, the level of responsibility they hold, or the societal contribution they make. Improving pay scales and health care insurance for all are the two top-ranking priorities for workplace change of respondents in both the scientific and popular samples. Yet, they feel that neither their employers nor public policy adequately recognize or support women's family responsibilities. The number one issue women want to bring to the President's attention is the difficulty of balancing work and family obligations. They report that problems with child care are deep and pervasive, affecting families across the economic spectrum.
Respondents are concerned about incidents of discrimination.
However, the most frequently described inequities, those that seem to weigh most heavily, are systemic. Time and again, women describe a work world that still compensates women in almost every job and profession at a lesser rate than men, defines jobs done primarily by women as less valuable, and fails to acknowledge that women are mainstays in both the workplace and the home. However, I take my job very seriously and I am entitled to receive the same compensation and consideration for what I do as does any male working in a comparable capacity in the nation. The questionnaire surfaced a number of issues and concerns that are shared by working women from both the popular and scientific samples. Health care insurance for all ranks as the number one priority for change.