Ashe Schow
The Washington Examiner
4/7/2014
A White House adviser had to walk back the oft-repeated myth that women make 77 cents on the dollar that men make after being questioned about the figure during a conference call Monday.
While detailing executive actions President Obama plans to take Tuesday regarding equal pay for women, Betsey Stevenson, a member of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, said very defiantly that despite women contributing 44 percent of their household incomes, they continue to make less than men. Obama has declared Tuesday “Equal Pay Day” to highlight his administration’s focus on that issue.
“They’re stuck at 77 cents on the dollar, and that gender wage gap is seen very persistently across the income distribution, within occupations, across occupations, and we see it when men and women are working side by side doing identical work.”…
…as soon as Stevenson was actually questioned about the statistic by McClatchy reporter Lindsay Wise, the White House adviser crumbled, admitting her earlier comments were inaccurate…
…And while we’re at it, let’s not forget that the White House pays women less than men. But that’s okay, said White House press secretary Jay Carney, because they still pay “better than the national average.”…
Wutevah. The complete article is at The Washington Examiner.
H/T Seton Motley
Update: Two Ways to Hurt Women in the Workplace
Today is “Equal Pay Day” for those who believe that The Man is keeping women down.
Convincing people that injustice is taking place is a great way to push your policy agenda—and that’s where “Equal Pay Day” comes from. It’s the left’s claim that women in America are paid only about 77 cents on the dollar compared to men.
But as Foundry Senior Contributor Genevieve Wood has explained, that talking point comes from creative—not accurate—comparisons…
