gender pay gap is a result of women's choices from the U.S department of labour
http://www.the-spearhead.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/Gender-Wage-Gap-Final-Report.pdf
don't attack me attack the folks who created the report
A greater percentage of women than men tend to work part-time. Part-time work tends to
pay less than full-time work.
A greater percentage of women than men tend to leave the labor force for child birth, child
care and elder care. Some of the wage gap is explained by the percentage of women who
were not in the labor force during previous years, the age of women, and the number of
children in the home.
Women, especially working mothers, tend to value “family friendly” workplace policies
more than men. Some of the wage gap is explained by industry and occupation, particularly,
the percentage of women who work in the industry and occupation.
2.1.4 Career interruptions
The wages paid to workers are affected not only by the amount of work experience that a worker has
accumulated, but also by the continuity of the accumulation. Results from a statistical analysis of the
earnings patterns of male and female college graduates over time indicate that leave taken from a
career, such as leave for childbirth or for raising children, is associated with reduced income, and that
such interruptions are much more prevalent among mothers than among fathers. [Dey & Hill, 2007]
2.3 Summary
Extant economic research has identified numerous factors that contribute to the gender wage gap.
Many of the factors relate to differences in the choices and behavior of women and men in balancing
their work, personal, and family lives. These factors include, most notably, the occupations and
industries in which they work, and their human capital development, work experience, career
interruptions, and motherhood