Women represent an increasingly larger share of the total workforce in the United Statesconstituting nearly half of the total workforce. In addition, an increasing proportion of women in the workforce are more educated. However, research by GAO and others has shown that womens average pay has been and remains lower than that of men. Questions have been raised about the extent to which less-advantaged womenthat is, those who are low wage or less educatedexperience lower wages than less-advantaged men.GAO was asked to examine the differences in representation, key characteristics, and pay among women and men (1) with less education and (2) with low wages. GAO defined less-educated workers as those having a high school degree or less and low-wage workers as those earning an hourly wage rate in the bottom quintileor 20 percentof wages across the workforce. GAO analyzed data from the Department of Labors Current Population Survey (CPS); reviewed other work on similar topics; and interviewed agency officials, representatives of womens groups, and other researchers.

Women in general have surpassed men in obtaining education over the last three decades, but on average, women with a high school degree or less earned lower hourly wages than men with the same level of education. Among these less-educated workers, women tended to work in industries and occupations, such as health care and social assistance, that had lower wages than those in which men worked. Even when less-educated women and men were in the same broad industry or occupation category, these women's average hourly wage was lower than men's. GAO estimated that in 2010, less-educated women earned 86 cents-compared with 81 cents in 2000-for every dollar men earned, after adjusting for available factors that may affect pay. The annual household income of less-educated workers varied based on marital status and the presence of children, but in all cases, women, on average, had lower personal earnings than men. Less-educated single women households with children had among the lowest total annual income of all households, averaging about $37,000. Women have made progress in earning higher wages over the last three decades, but they remain overrepresented among workers who earn low wages. Women made up an estimated 49 percent of the overall workforce in 2010, but constituted 59 percent of the low-wage workforce. Low-wage women and men earned a similar hourly wage, but women as a group earned less in a typical week-in part, because they were more likely to work part-time. While hourly wages for low-wage men and women did not vary much, annual household income did vary, largely based on marital status and the presence of children in the household. Single women with children in the household had the lowest annual household income, averaging about $27,000.

The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) is an independent agency that works for Congress. The GAO watches over Congress, and investigates how the federal government spends taxpayers dollars. The Comptroller General of the United States is the leader of the GAO, and is appointed to a 15-year term by the U.S. President. The GAO wants to support Congress, while at the same time doing right by the citizens of the United States. They audit, investigate, perform analyses, issue legal decisions and report anything that the government is doing. This is one of their reports.

Research by GAO and others has shown that women's average pay has been and remains lower than that of men. GAO was asked to examine the differences in representation, key characteristics, and pay among women and men (1) with less education and (2) with low wages. GAO defined less-educated workers as those having a high school degree or less and low-wage workers as those earning an hourly wage rate in the bottom quintile--or 20 percent--of wages across the workforce. GAO analyzed data from the Department of Labor's Current Population Survey (CPS); reviewed other work on similar topics; and interviewed agency officials, representatives of women's groups, and other researchers.

The 2018/19 edition analyses the gender pay gap. The report focuses on two main challenges: how to find the most useful means for measurement, and how to break down the gender pay gap in ways that best inform policy-makers and social partners of the factors that underlie it. The report also includes a review of key policy issues regarding wages and the reduction of gender pay gaps in different national circumstances.

Nine to Five provides a lively and accessible introduction to the laws and policies regulating sex, sexuality, and gender identity in the American workplace. Contemporary cases and events reveal the breadth and persistence of sexism and gender stereotyping. Through a series of essays organized around sex discrimination, sexual harassment, pregnancy discrimination, and pay equity, the book highlights legal rules and doctrines that privilege men over women and masculinity over femininity. In understanding the law - what it forbids, what it allows, and to what it turns a blind eye - we see why it is far too soon to declare the triumph of working women's equality. Despite significant gains for women, gender continues to define the work experience in both predictable and surprising ways. A witty and engaging guide to the legal terrain, Nine to Five also proposes solutions to the many obstacles that remain on the path to equality.

This book provides a framework of researchers to both engage in social justice research as well as to evolve as social justice practioners. -- back cover.