Last week on the CSS blog we wrote about the Gender Pay Gap. This got us thinking about women, who are affected by this existing gap, and how they feel about it. What really keeps them satisfied at work? Are they more or less satisfied than their male counterparts?
PayScale shared to the New York Times a job data analysis in which the company took a look at gender differences among job features such as job satisfaction for college graduates.
This analysis reported that both men and women are about “equally likely to say that they are satisfied with their jobs”, with about 65 percent saying they are satisfied. For both males and females, a higher job pay is directly proportional to higher job satisfaction.
The difference is spotted in the amount paid, since for women it takes less money to be satisfied at work. In addition, 37 percent of women described their job as “very meaningful”, while only 27 percent of men did.
The following chart displays the medial salary for male and female college graduates at different levels of job satisfaction:
Image Source: nytimes.com
From the chart the following can be described:
- Men earn more than women at every level of job satisfaction.
- The most satisfied women earn almost as much as the least satisfied men, around the low $50,000s.
- Jumping to a higher satisfaction rate requires a bigger increase for men than for women.
Going back to the Gender Pay Gap post, could it be that women’s disadvantaged compensation is a result of their satisfaction with their jobs being less dependent on pay?
The New York Times article states that “much of the overall gap between men’s and women’s earnings can be explained by the types of careers they choose”, or probably the types of careers available for their gender. Women tend to occupy low-wage industries, contrary to males dominating higher lucrative fields.
Inconsistencies
According to a 2005 study, gender differences in job satisfaction were clear between university teachers. Females were more satisfied with both their work and co-workers than men. Higher ranking female academics also tended to be more satisfied with their jobs than their male counterparts.
A study by McNeely reported a significant difference between female professionals and male professionals, with women being more satisfied.
A 2009 study on job satisfaction concluded that both education and salary influence the satisfaction level. Thus the recommendation that the company’s management encourages employees to attend continuing education programs by offering scholarships, work release and study leave.
These statistics on job satisfaction are no justification to the Gender Pay Gap, but it might help explain why the gap still exists. It could be that women are more cautious when asking for a higher pay, or they might not care as much as men do. Probably women have given up on the idea of earning an equal pay as their male co-workers, and they just conform with what’s out there.
It’s hard to identify the root of the pattern, but companies should care about measuring job satisfaction since it directly impacts productivity. Organizations cannot reach competitive levels of quality if their personnel isn’t satisfied or doesn’t identify with the company.
