Rough Draft

Prior to the 1950's women were viewed as the caretaker of the domestic household, either as a stay at home mother, or as a house-wife. In order to break through this stereotypical boundary, women fought for their rights, which included the right to vote and the right to work. America in the 21st century claims that both men and women are equal, however, the group that is discriminated the most is women. Women are paid 77% less than men, even if they do not take leave for child-care. The Equal Pay Act of 1963 claims that people, regardless of age, gender, or background are entitled to equal pay. However, employers do not follow this standard. There is a pay gap in almost every occupation, and due to the economic crisis in the United States, families are incapable of keeping one income. It is not an option for women to stay home and take care of children. Some causes that lead to unequal pay are social structures and occupational segregation. Social structures are standards placed among people based off of their gender, age, orientation, etc. For example, women are viewed as the less dominant gender who must take care of the family instead of seeking work. From these social standards, stereotypes are formed which leads to a false assumption that women are less significant when compared to men. If women are considered less significant then it would make sense to an employer, based off of these social standards, that the work done by women is not as effective as the work done by men, and therefore women should not be compensated as an equal. Occupational segregation, is a distribution where specific demographic characteristics (such as gender) are more prominent in certain jobs. For example, high-end restaurants are more likely to hire male waiters, while diners and low-end restaurants are more likely to hire women. More thoroughly, occupational segregation can be derived from social structures because it is based on the idea that women are less significant compared to men, and therefore women are not capable of working higher positions. Male politicians will argue that men and women are paid equal, and that the reason for the discrepancy is because there is a high majority of women who are working in lower income fields when compared to that of men. The reason why the majority of women are working in lower income fields is because of occupational segregation. Preventing women from obtaining higher working positions and equal compensation because of gender is the same as oppression. Morally speaking, oppression is wrong and therefore this issue must be dealt with immediately. Additionally, Americans criticize other countries for oppressing women, yet Americans act as if they do not oppress women themselves. The consequences as a result do not just affect a specific group of people but the entire country. Women constitute half of the United States' population, this means that half of the citizens of the United States are paid unfairly, and are discriminated against. The consequences of unequal pay affects both men and women. As previously stated, due to the economic crisis families cannot afford one income, men are now pressured to provide a decent living for their family. Unfortunately, with an increase in house prices, mortgage, and insurance, families fall short on cash and are incapable of paying these fees/debt. So if men are advocating for women to stay home as housewives, they are adding unnecessary stress onto themselves. Furthermore, pension and social security are based off of a person's salary. With an unfair income, women are cheated out of hundreds of thousands of dollars. Capital such as this could help pay for medical bills, or a child's education. The money women are cheated out of affects families who help run the United states, and that lack of money unfairly hinders a child's future. This gender pay gap is an issue that violates, moral and practical principles.