Feminists

And most honest research seeking to answer the why have come up short in terms of explaining away all of the difference. That's why for feminists there is no debate on whether women cause the difference themselves. It's a given that there is a discriminatory element not just is wage comparisons within the same fields but in comparing the average wages in fields dominated by women to the wages in fields dominated by men.

As for women working fewer hours with less seniority, the presumptive role of women as the workers who step out or step down in the workforce while raising children accounts for much of that. It's one of the reasons second wave feminists made such a big deal about placing an economic value on stay-at-home mothers. If fathers shouldered the same responsibility for dialing back their work lives, perhaps our society would value work differently and set pay based on actual contributions rather than softer markers like seniority -- and more fathers would have the opportunity to be more involved in their children's lives.