Upping the High-Tech Ante The Contrarian By: Naomi Lopez Bauman 5.19.2000
This year women had to work until May 11—Equal Pay Day—to match the salaries of men in the preceding year. This fact has provided President Clinton with another opportunity to take a swing at the high-tech industry. Citing women’s low representation in high-tech jobs and lower salaries, Clinton called on new government initiatives to address this latest "digital divide."
Clinton has been calling for $27 million to support his Equal Pay Initiative and for Congress to pass the Paycheck Protection Act to narrow the pay gap. Despite evidence that demonstrates that the pay gap virtually disappears when one compares women and men with similar educational attainment, field of study, hours of labor, and continuous time spent in the workforce, Clinton is now proposing another $20 million to fix the supposed high-tech pay gap.
The supposed high-tech pay gap is based on a recent Council of Economic Advisors’ report. The author found a 12 percent wage gap in the information technology field after controlling for education level, age, and occupation. This is consistent with the wage gap for the broader labor market, as well. But further investigation reveals that field of study and personal choice are also important factors in determining pay.
For women between the ages of 25 and 34 with bachelor’s degrees, there does not appear to be a significant wage gap with their male counterparts in engineering and computer science. Engineering yields women about 99 percent of men’s earnings. Women earned 94 percent of men’s earnings in computer and information sciences.
Ann Winblad, co-founder of Hummer Winblad Venture Partners, turned $500 into millions—without the support of impressive academic credentials, powerful alumni networks, and deep pockets. Today, with resources of about $200 million, she is one of the most powerful people in Silicon Valley. In a recent Harper’s Bazaar article, Winblad commented, "I’m happy that people see value in investing in intellectual capital. There are no ceilings here, let alone glass ceilings."
The Administration’s solution is to add more taxpayer dollars to the slag heap of federal bureaucracy. The federal government already operates several programs and countless initiatives aimed at women in high-tech fields. One of the most prominent programs is the National Aeronautical and Space Administration’s (NASA) Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) program, an undergraduate research and mentoring program for minority and disadvantaged women. The Environmental Protection Program (EPA) also conducts outreach to recruit and retain female scientists and engineers. A National Science Foundation Program, Professional Opportunities for Women in Research and Education (POWRE), assists women re-entering a science career, and the National Institutes of Health run a similar program. Rather than evaluate and publicly debate the merits of these types of programs, the Administration is gearing up to do more of the same.
The time has come for government to stop perpetuating the gender discrimination myth that misinforms the public and reinforces the victimized woman stereotype. Instead, it should focus its efforts on creating opportunity by allowing parents to rescue their children from schools that are failing to prepare them for the American job market.
—Naomi Lopez Bauman, Director, Center for Enterprise and Opportunity
This year women had to work until May 11—Equal Pay Day—to match the salaries of men in the preceding year. This fact has provided President Clinton with another opportunity to take a swing at the high-tech industry. Citing women’s low representation in high-tech jobs and lower salaries, Clinton called on new government initiatives to address this latest "digital divide."
Clinton has been calling for $27 million to support his Equal Pay Initiative and for Congress to pass the Paycheck Protection Act to narrow the pay gap. Despite evidence that demonstrates that the pay gap virtually disappears when one compares women and men with similar educational attainment, field of study, hours of labor, and continuous time spent in the workforce, Clinton is now proposing another $20 million to fix the supposed high-tech pay gap.
The supposed high-tech pay gap is based on a recent Council of Economic Advisors’ report. The author found a 12 percent wage gap in the information technology field after controlling for education level, age, and occupation. This is consistent with the wage gap for the broader labor market, as well. But further investigation reveals that field of study and personal choice are also important factors in determining pay.
For women between the ages of 25 and 34 with bachelor’s degrees, there does not appear to be a significant wage gap with their male counterparts in engineering and computer science. Engineering yields women about 99 percent of men’s earnings. Women earned 94 percent of men’s earnings in computer and information sciences.
Ann Winblad, co-founder of Hummer Winblad Venture Partners, turned $500 into millions—without the support of impressive academic credentials, powerful alumni networks, and deep pockets. Today, with resources of about $200 million, she is one of the most powerful people in Silicon Valley. In a recent Harper’s Bazaar article, Winblad commented, "I’m happy that people see value in investing in intellectual capital. There are no ceilings here, let alone glass ceilings."
The Administration’s solution is to add more taxpayer dollars to the slag heap of federal bureaucracy. The federal government already operates several programs and countless initiatives aimed at women in high-tech fields. One of the most prominent programs is the National Aeronautical and Space Administration’s (NASA) Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) program, an undergraduate research and mentoring program for minority and disadvantaged women. The Environmental Protection Program (EPA) also conducts outreach to recruit and retain female scientists and engineers. A National Science Foundation Program, Professional Opportunities for Women in Research and Education (POWRE), assists women re-entering a science career, and the National Institutes of Health run a similar program. Rather than evaluate and publicly debate the merits of these types of programs, the Administration is gearing up to do more of the same.
The time has come for government to stop perpetuating the gender discrimination myth that misinforms the public and reinforces the victimized woman stereotype. Instead, it should focus its efforts on creating opportunity by allowing parents to rescue their children from schools that are failing to prepare them for the American job market.
