Pay Equality vs. Pay Equity: What Is the Difference?

While most people are aware of the gender pay gap, many people may be unaware of the difference between pay equality and pay equity.

Pay Equality vs. Pay Equity Overview

The pay gap, pay equality, and pay equity are all terms referring to the statistically proven wage gap between people of different genders and ethnicities. The gender pay gap is often cited as evidence that women are systemically underpaid for doing the same work as men. However, although it is true that women make only 81 cents for every dollar that men make, this percentage fails to take many factors into account. The 81 cent statistic is the uncontrolled gender pay gap. This means that all working women, in any industry, make 81 cents to every dollar that all working men in any industry earn. This number does not take into account the different types of jobs chosen by men versus women. Men are more likely to go into some of the highest paying occupations, while women are more likely to choose work that pays less or allows them to work part time.

In addition to considering the different occupations that may lead to men earning more than women, pay equality and pay equity also take into account outside factors that may result in men being more likely to have higher paying jobs than women. Additionally, while the pay gap often simply refers to the gender pay gap, the ideas of pay equality and pay equity may go further and compare pay inequalities between people of different ethnicities or abilities.

Pay equality is the idea that equal work should be given equal pay, regardless of the identities of the people performing the work. According to pay equality, workers with comparable experience and education, working in the same occupation at the same level are entitled to earn the same compensation. Pay equity follows this line of thinking, but adds in additional details.

Pay Equality vs. Pay Equity: What Is the Difference?

While pay equality is based on the idea that equal work should result in equal pay, pay equity goes deeper into the reasons behind why people are paid differently in the first place. While it may be easy to explain away the pay gap between men and women by comparing the jobs that each gender chooses, pay equity explores the reasons why men may be more likely to go into higher paid occupations such as CEO, surgeon, dentist, aerospace engineer, or aircraft pilot, and why women may choose more flexible career options. Pay equity also takes into account multiple factors that affect the pay gap between white people and people of color, abled and disabled people, and other identities.

Rather than simply looking at the disparity in earnings between people of different genders or ethnicities, pay equity explores the systemic issues, conscious or unconscious biases, social norms, educational opportunities, and wealth that may negatively impact women, people of color, or people with other marginalized identities. While occupations and earning capacity are often referred to with an attitude that with hard work, anything is possible, this idea fails to take into account other factors.

Although hard work and dedication may be one facet of landing a high paying job, it is not the only determining factor. People whose parents did not pursue higher education classes at a college or university are less likely to get a degree, and those who do go to college are more likely to drop out before graduating when compared to students whose parents have degrees. Additionally, these first generation students may be starting out with less wealth, and less opportunities than their peers with college-educated parents. They may only be able to afford community college or state school, rather than private universities. This may limit their options for future employment. Even first generation students who do graduate with a college degree receive an average starting salary 12 percent lower than what their peers with college educated parents make.

Who Can Be Affected?

While pay equality is often simplified to the pay discrepancy between men and women, there are many types of people who may be affected by wage inequalities. While the most quoted wage gap is the 81 cents made by women for every dollar made by men, this number is in reference to the amount that white women make when compared to white men. Different ethnicities are affected by wage inequality as well, with Black women making approximately 62 percent of what white men make, Latina women earning 57 percent, and Asian women making close to 86 percent.

The disparity in income for employees who are non-white may be partially explained by conscious and unconscious biases in hiring practices. According to a 2017 study including approximately 54,000 resumes that were sent out for 25,000 positions, candidates who are white are more likely to receive call backs from potential employers than candidates who are Black or Latino. The study claims that white applicants received 36 percent more callbacks than African American candidates with similar qualifications. Additionally, white applicants also received callbacks 24 percent more often than comparably qualified Latinos.

According to another study from 2016, Black candidates who used resumes with their own qualifications but with a white sounding name were 15 percent more likely to receive call backs than when they used their own names.

Can Pay Equality and Pay Equity Be Addressed with the Same Laws?

In order to ensure that pay equality and pay equity are both being taken into account, people who perform the same jobs must be compensated equally, and there must be more awareness around potential biases that negatively affect people of color and women. In order to create change and address these issues, laws regarding hiring and employment practices may need to change. Separate laws may be needed in order to ensure equality, or equal pay for equal work, and equity, or equal opportunities for people with diverse identities and backgrounds.

What Can Be Done to Address the Problem?

One way to create greater equity when it comes to earnings is to reduce the bias present in hiring. Some companies have found a way to reduce the effect that unconscious bias may have on who is hired for a given job. Rather than seeing a full resume, complete with a name, gender, race, ethnicity, and occasionally a photo, some companies now review copies of candidates’ resumes that hide this information and only identify the candidate by their initials. By obscuring the demographics of potential employees, employers may not be unconsciously affected by their internal biases.

Another way to address the problem may be to intentionally hire diverse candidates, and promote racial and gender diversity in your own workplace.

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This article is not legal advice. It is presented
for informational purposes only.