Weak excuses attached to women's check stubs

Nowadays, women are just as likely to hold positions of power as men. However, they still make substantially less than their male counterparts, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center. In a society where we pride ourselves on equality and dismissal of race, gender or sexual preference as qualifications, how does an injustice like unequal pay exist?

There are even laws set in place that are supposed to prevent pay discrimination. Yet women still make less money than men.

According to the National Organization for Women, women make 77 cents on the dollar compared to men. This is alarming because women today hold more positions in various fields than ever before and, according to the last census, women have represented the majority of college students since 1979.

So many years have passed since women earned equal rights and it feels that in any capacity, a woman can stand shoulder-to-shoulder with a man and be viewed as an equal. But this optimism may also be very naive.

The Equal Pay Act, passed in 1963, made it illegal to pay men and women different wage rates for equal work on jobs that require equal skills, effort and responsibility and are performed under similar working conditions. Even with laws in place that prevent it, how does inequality in the workplace continue?

One explanation is women do not feel as comfortable negotiating wages as men and that women who do are seen as pushy and demanding. It shouldn't take an act of Congress for women to earn better wages. Their pay should reflect the work they do.

Warren Farrell, author of "Why Men Earn More: The Startling Truth Behind the Pay Gap - and What Women Can Do About It," claims men are more likely to make life-decisions that will lead to a higher salary.

He explains that men are more likely to relocate, take on more dangerous jobs, seek jobs with financial risks and work in unpleasant environments.

The cause for most of the male advantages are that women need jobs with flexibility to accommodate family demands. Though Farrell's explanations offer a great deal of insight into the debate on equal pay, they still do not explain why the majority of women make less than men.

The numbers are even worse for minorities. African American women earn only 68 cents and Latinas 57 cents to every dollar men earn, according to the National Committee on Pay Equity.

Most companies have zero-tolerance policies against discrimination of any type and stress the importance of reporting it immediately. However, these same organizations also have policies that prohibit employees from discussing wages.

This makes it increasingly difficult for women to prove that they are victims of discrimination. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in May 2007 that women who believe they are being denied equal pay must file suit within 180 days of the alleged discrimination.

It seems that many have simply accepted the fact that women make less than men and that there is not much they can do about it. This is not true. There are several organizations that stress the importance of gender equality and are fighting to put an end to inequality in the workplace. Economist Evelyn Murphy is president of The WAGE Project, an organization that was established for the sole purpose of ending discrimination against women in the workplace.

Equal pay has even been an issue on the current political scene. Democratic presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton is promoting a "Paycheck Fairness Act." The bill would intensify anti-discrimination laws, create a negotiation skills-training program for women and stop retaliation against employees who disclose salaries.

Equality is an issue that has plagued our nation for decades and it may continue for decades to come. It is important that with this, as with any issue, we identify it and begin working toward progress.

Let's give women the equal rights they deserve - including the right to equal pay.

Whitney Kinsey is a junior journalism major and a contributing writer for the Daily Forty-Niner.