Why Men Earn More: The Startling Truth Behind the Pay Gap--And What Women Can Do about It

by Warren Farrell

Book Overview

"Controversial and exhaustively researched, gender expert Warren Farrell's latest book "Why Men Earn More" takes as its stunning argument the idea that bias-based unequal pay for women is largely a... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0814472109
• ISBN13: 9780814472101
• Release Date: January 2005
• Publisher: AMACOM/American Management Association
• Length: 270 Pages
• Weight: 1.32 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.3" x 9.4"
• Age Range: 17 years and up
• Grade Range: Grade 12 and higher

Customer Reviews

Emphasis on WHAT WOMEN CAN DO ABOUT IT !

This book is filled with numerous suggestions on how women can increase their earning power. In fact, "Why Men Earn More" presents at least 25 ways to higher pay. When I examined the 25 ways to increase pay that are outlined in Dr. Farrell's book, I immediately recognized that these were important tools useful to both men and women. I am a full-time working woman and mother of a middle school aged child that I raised on my own for most of his life while also holding down a job to support both of us. So of course I am interested in any information that would lead to an increase in my earning power. Aside from my own interest as a working mother, I also want my son to know about these tools when he graduates from school. In fact, I would recommend this book to young people contemplating what to major in while going through their university years, as well as new college graduates entering the work force for the first time. I wish I had been given this book before deciding to major in lingustics during my college years. I diligently worked through university, earning a B.A. degree upon graduation. Linguistics majors, like literature majors - as pointed out by Dr. Farrell - belong to those social science fields that do not lead to the higher paying jobs that more technological fields offer. I experienced this first hand when I went to work for a civil engineering firm (where I had little use for a B.A. in linguistics) and earned more there than in any of the administrative support jobs I have held over the years. Whenever I scan the employment classifieds, I consistently see higher paying jobs in the technical fields. Dr. Farrell highlights the difference in outcomes based on work decisions or choices we make. This engenders an attitude of self-responsibility rather than victimization. Because I value my time at home with my family and in the community where I live, I choose not to relocate, to work those longer hours that might earn me more, or work unusual shifts that would take away from family time. I have made certain choices to maintain the quality of my life as it is. The gist of "Why Men Earn More" is that higher paying work often involves factors like extensive travel, more financial and emotional risks, more hours at work, taking on more responsibility or working in an unpleasant environment, all of which impact the quality of life for a worker. Amazingly, given all the information contained in this book, "Why Men Earn More" is fun to read and offers humorous anecdotes to lighten up the content. This book draws our attention to the work/life-choices we all make that can impact our earning power. The approach is positive, leaving readers to examine how they can make a difference and offers proactive suggestions to increase earning power. By adopting a take-charge approach and implementing some of the 25 ways that Dr. Farrell outlines in his book, we enable ourselves to better shape the rewards or fulfillment we

Check your bias at the door

The most important aspect of Dr. Farrell's work is his meticulous citation of his sources. The feminist mantra that women earn a fraction of what men earn is statistically true, but upon closer examination, as Dr. Farrell does, it's not completely true. Gender differences is a very touchy subject and I recommend to anyone who reads this book to read the footnotes - either prove to yourself that it's true or disprove it. The Equal Pay Act (EPA) gives an individual a right to the same contractual pay and benefits as a person of the opposite sex in the same employment, where the man and the woman are doing like work, or work rated as equivalent under an analytical job evaluation study, or work that is proved to be of equal value. I've always wondered that if women did earn less than men why wasn't there a proportionate amount of law suits brought under the EPA? Dr. Farrell answers the question.

It's News

It is a longstanding observation that we "know" many things that aren't so. One of these things is that women are paid less than men for doing the same work. This is a notion that Warren Farrell devastatingly refutes in his new book. "Why Men Earn More" is more than a book--it's news. It's more than news--it's a revolution in the new thinking it requires of us. Let me emphasize that this is a book about much more than pay or who gets paid more or less for what, important though that issue is. At a deeper level, this is about the underlying relationship between the sexes--and the relationship of the sexes to the marketplace. Lucidly and persuasively written, this is a book that will change both personal lives and government policy--or should. If you read this book and get as excited about it as I am, the next book of Warren Farrell's to read (if you haven't read it already) is "The Myth of Male Power." Warren Farrell is one of our most challenging social and cultural thinkers. He leads us, sometimes, to shocking conclusions, but with scrupulously researched data to support his conclusions. One is a wiser person for reading him.

Finally, The Truth Is Available

This is a well-researched book that definitely tells the truth that Companies are not going to pay $1.00 to one worker if another worker is available for 59 cents. It is supply and demand of workers, not gender discrimination. The author introduces 25 factors of jobs and careers that make the jobs either less desirable or more demanding or both. Some of these factors are long hours, more travel, commission only, irregular hours, high risk, etc. Jobs containing one or more of these factors may pay a bigger paycheck but always at a cost to the worker such as time away from home, longer commute, taking the job home at night, dangerous environment, etc. Pay differences are determined mostly by who is willing to take these "worse" jobs. In fact when all of these 25 factors are controlled so that you have either a man or woman in the same job, the women on average earn the same as men or more than men in about 90 job classifications.

This book should be ranked six stars.

I am delighted to see that this book is strongly endorsed by someone as high-profile and erudite as George Gilder. He has consistently recognized paradigm-shifting trends before they become obvious to the rest of us. Farrell's new book shows women how they can make more money. In point of fact, his statistics make it clear that when they will take on equal risk and responsibility, they make more money than men in the same positions. Don't expect as Vice President of Human Resources to make as much as the Vice President of Sales. When women put themselves in jobs where their income is determined by commission, they quickly learn that they will earn as much, or more, than men...or they will sink. Don't expect as Vice President in charge of the corporate library to earn as much as Vice President of Engineering. You will be paid more for taking on more responsibility. Farrell makes it clear that workers filling those jobs demanding a lot of risk, travel, responsibility, long or unusual hours, and compensation based upon performance as opposed to salary, tend to earn more. They are high stress positions and women tend to avoid them as a lifestyle choice. Those women who do choose to take such jobs do quite well financially and even better than men.