Skip to main content
  • SHRM
  • Foundation
  • CEO Circle
  • SHRM Business
  • Linkage Logo
  • Store
  • Sign In
  • Account
    • Account
    • Logout
    • Global
    • India
    • MENA
Executive network
About
Apply Now
  • Membership
  • News & Insights
    News & Insights

    Christine Mixan
    People + Strategy Podcast

    The People + Strategy podcast features thought leaders in HR and insights from the world of work.

    • People + Strategy Journal

      People + Strategy is a quarterly journal that delivers the most current theory, research, and practice in strategic human resource management.

    • Research

      Unlock data, research, and expert thought leadership, accelerating your organization’s growth and success.

    • News

      Members of the SHRM Executive Network enjoy access to expert analysis of data from SHRM Research, commentary on current trends, and insights from recent EN events.

  • Networking & Events
    Networking & Events

    Executive Network Experience at SHRM25
    Executive Network Experience at SHRM25

    This private convening is designed to meet your professional business needs as an HR leader.

    • Visionaries Summit

      When you attend the two-day Visionaries Summit, you’ll leave with data-backed ideas and action plans to implement right away.

    • EN:Insights Forum

      The EN:Insights Forums bring together like-minded leaders to explore the latest research on the business strategies and trends that are driving innovation and organizational success.

    • EN:Assembly

      Your trusted circle of HR peers for thought leadership, collaboration, and support.

Close
  • Membership
  • News & Insights
    back
    News & Insights
    Christine Mixan
    People + Strategy Podcast

    The People + Strategy podcast features thought leaders in HR and insights from the world of work.

    • People + Strategy Journal

      People + Strategy is a quarterly journal that delivers the most current theory, research, and practice in strategic human resource management.

    • Research

      Unlock data, research, and expert thought leadership, accelerating your organization’s growth and success.

    • News

      Members of the SHRM Executive Network enjoy access to expert analysis of data from SHRM Research, commentary on current trends, and insights from recent EN events.

  • Networking & Events
    back
    Networking & Events
    Executive Network Experience at SHRM25
    Executive Network Experience at SHRM25

    This private convening is designed to meet your professional business needs as an HR leader.

    • Visionaries Summit

      When you attend the two-day Visionaries Summit, you’ll leave with data-backed ideas and action plans to implement right away.

    • EN:Insights Forum

      The EN:Insights Forums bring together like-minded leaders to explore the latest research on the business strategies and trends that are driving innovation and organizational success.

    • EN:Assembly

      Your trusted circle of HR peers for thought leadership, collaboration, and support.

About
Apply Now
  • Store
    • Global
    • India
    • MENA
  • SHRM
  • Foundation
  • CEO Circle
  • SHRM Business
  • Linkage Logo
Executive network
Sign In
  • Account
    • Account
    • Logout
Close

  1. Executive News & Insights
  2. Women in Leadership: Closing the Gender Pay Gap
Share
  • Linked In
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Email

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Vivamus convallis sem tellus, vitae egestas felis vestibule ut.


Error message details.

Copy button
Reuse Permissions

Request permission to republish or redistribute SHRM content and materials.


Learn More
News

Women in Leadership: Closing the Gender Pay Gap

June 1, 2022 | Paul Falcone

A business woman is walking up a set of stairs.


​

Editor's note: This is the second article in a series about women in leadership. The first article was published May 4, 2022.

 

Women, on average, are paid only 82 cents for every dollar a man earns. They tend to have fewer promotional opportunities and are critically underrepresented at the board and executive leadership levels. They leave the workplace in larger numbers, a trend which has been exacerbated by the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic and family caregiving demands. 

Acknowledging the seriousness of the pay-disparity challenge is the first step in addressing it.

The Hard Facts

According to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, women's annual earnings in 2020 were 82.3 percent of men's, and the gap was even wider for many women of color.

According to a U.S. Department of Labor blog post, to earn what white, non-Hispanic men earned in 2020, Asian-American and Pacific Islander women had to work until March 9 of the following year. For Black women, it was Aug. 3. For Native American women, it was Sept. 8. And for Latinas, it was more than nine months into the year—Oct. 21. 

Some pay disparities between men and women are justifiable. Education levels, licenses, prior employment history and much more can account for differences in pay.

"But sometimes, gaps exist for which there is no reasonable explanation," said Barbara Zung, senior vice president and chief human resources officer of the American Management Association in New York City. "That's when you have to ask yourself if something else may be at hand.  

Salary Bans Are a Step in the Right Direction 

Laws that ban employers from asking job candidates about their salary histories will likely go a long way toward reducing gender pay differences between men and women. While there are no federal laws that specifically prohibit employers from asking job applicants about their current or previous salaries, employers are prohibited from asking about salary history in a number of states, including California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Vermont and Washington. 

"Relying on a candidate's prior salary in determining the individual's new salary may perpetuate the systemic undervaluing of work for women and women of color and, in turn, lead to more wage disparities," said Jacqueline Cookerly Aguilera, a labor and employment partner with Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP in Los Angeles. 

Many recruiters go into salary negotiations understanding that candidates typically expect a 10 percent to 20 percent increase to justify changing jobs. If a recruiter knows that Candidate A, a woman, makes $20 an hour and Candidate B, a man, makes $28 an hour, then that 10 percent to 20 percent increase will prolong the disparity in their pay. If you take pay history off the table, however, a recruiter may be more inclined to pay both candidates consistently, based on their years of experience, level of technical expertise, education and the like.

True, employers may ask what a candidate's ideal salary might look like, but lacking knowledge of prior salary history could address some of the traditional differences in pay between men and women.

A New Way Forward: Gender Pay Audits

It's reasonable in today's environment to recommend that your organization conduct a gender pay audit, and it can be done fairly simply, even for smaller organizations.

Gender pay equity audits are intended to answer questions such as:

*How do you balance pay equity with performance?

*How do you actually measure compensation differences to see if there is a bias?

*How should pay equity processes be communicated internally?

*How much should you budget and what timeframe makes most sense for pay adjustments due *to pay disparities? Should executive pay disparities be treated differently?

"Employers need not attempt to fix everything at once," Zung counsels. "Salary plans permit you to schedule compensation changes over the next few quarters or next few years, starting immediately with where the disparities are most transparent."

Female underrepresentation across the board—from the hourly level to the C-suite—holds U.S. companies back from reaching their greatest potential. In the end, investing in gender pay parity may provide the greatest return-on-investment of all, because talent is—and will always be—the primary reason for your company's success.


Paul Falcone (www.PaulFalconeHR.com) is a frequent contributor to SHRM Online. He is a member of the SHRM Speakers Bureau, a corporate leadership trainer, certified executive coach and author of The Paul Falcone Workplace Leadership Series (March 2022). The first book in the five-book series is titled Workplace Ethics: Mastering Ethical Leadership and Sustaining a Moral Workplace. Other books in the series focus on the talent management life cycle, including Effective Hiring; Leadership Offense; Leadership Defense; and The New Managers (HarperCollins Leadership and Amacom).

Global Mindset
Inclusion and Diversity

Artificial Intelligence in the Workplace

​An organization run by AI is not a futuristic concept. Such technology is already a part of many workplaces and will continue to shape the labor market and HR. Here's how employers and employees can successfully manage generative AI and other AI-powered systems.



Related Content

Kelly Dobbs Bunting speaks onstage at SHRM24
(opens in a new tab)
News
Why AI+HI Is Essential to Compliance

HR must always include human intelligence and oversight of AI in decision-making in hiring and firing, a legal expert said at SHRM24. She added that HR can ensure compliance by meeting the strictest AI standards, which will be in Colorado’s upcoming AI law.

(opens in a new tab)
News
A 4-Day Workweek? AI-Fueled Efficiencies Could Make It Happen

The proliferation of artificial intelligence in the workplace, and the ensuing expected increase in productivity and efficiency, could help usher in the four-day workweek, some experts predict.

(opens in a new tab)
News
How One Company Uses Digital Tools to Boost Employee Well-Being

Learn how Marsh McLennan successfully boosts staff well-being with digital tools, improving productivity and work satisfaction for more than 20,000 employees.

HR Daily Newsletter

Stay up to date with the latest HR news, trends, and expert advice each business day.

Success title

Success caption

Manage Subscriptions
  • About SHRM
  • Careers at SHRM
  • Press Room
  • Contact SHRM
  • Book a SHRM Executive Speaker
  • Advertise with Us
  • Partner with Us
  • Copyright & Permissions
  • Post a Job
  • Find an HR Job
Follow Us
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • SHRM Newsletters
  • Ask An Advisor

© 2025 SHRM. All Rights Reserved

SHRM provides content as a service to its readers and members. It does not offer legal advice, and cannot guarantee the accuracy or suitability of its content for a particular purpose. Disclaimer


  1. Privacy Policy

  2. Terms of Use

  3. Accessibility

Join SHRM for Exclusive Access to Member Content

SHRM Members enjoy unlimited access to articles and exclusive member resources.

Already a member?
Free Article
Limit Reached

Get unlimited access to articles and member-exclusive resources.

You've reached the limit of 1 free article this month. Join to access unlimited articles and member-only resources.

Already a member?
Free Article
Exclusive Executive-Level Content

This content is for the SHRM Executive Network and Executive Content Subscription members only.

You've reached the limit of 1 free article this month. Join the Executive Network and enjoy unlimited content.

Already a member?
Free Article
Exclusive Executive-Level Content

This content is for the SHRM Executive Network and Executive Content Subscription members only.

You've reached the limit of 1 free article this month. Join and enjoy unlimited access to SHRM Executive Network Content.

Already a member?
Unlock Your Career with SHRM Membership

Please enjoy this free resource! Join SHRM for unlimited access to exclusive articles and tools.

Already a member?

Your membership is almost expired! Renew today for unlimited access to member content.

Renew now

Your membership has expired. Renew today for unlimited access to member content.

Renew Now

Your Executive Network membership is nearing its expiration. Renew now to maintain access.

Renew Now

Your membership has expired. Renew your Executive Network benefits today.

Renew Now