Reply #87: Here's another's thoughts on this issue (Calpundit blog) [View All]

[pmbryant]

http://www.calpundit.com/archives/002689.html

In this post (inspired by the new GAO report out today), Calpundit has an interesting anecdote:

(snip)

And it's hard to overcome even when it hits you in the face. I hired a guy many years ago, and based on his seniority and competence I offered him a pretty good salary. About a year later, as we expanded, I hired a woman to do the same job, but since she was less senior I offered her a salary about 20% less. After only a few months, however, I realized that her previous employer had obviously not recognized how good she was. If anything, she was actually better than the guy I had hired earlier.

But it was too late. Conventional thinking about compensation is too ingrained, and my boss was simply unwilling to give her a one-time pay increase to make things equal. It just wasn't done. We gave reviews once a year, and increases had to be between 0-8%. That was important and it just wasn't going to change.

So every year I would give her the maximum raise, and bit by bit she caught up. However, it took about seven or eight years. Today she's manager of her department.

(snip)

But even after relating this anecdote, this generally progressive fellow is somewhat dismissive of the problem, as later he suggests that a large part of the problem is due to women being less willing to shop around.

:eyes:

--Peter