Despite More College Degrees, Young Women Still Make Less Than Men | ThinkProgress

Despite More College Degrees, Young Women Still Make Less Than Men | ThinkProgress: The good news: a new report from the Pew Research Center finds that the gender wage gap for young women between the ages of 25 and 34 has narrowed considerably since 1980. The bad news: despite the fact that they are significantly more likely to have a bachelor’s degree — 38 percent compared to 31 percent — they still make less than their male peers. Last year, women ages 25 to 34 made 93 percent of men’s hourly earnings — a narrow gap, but a gap nonetheless.

The report notes that the overall gap in hourly earnings is 84 percent. And while it may be narrowing for younger women, there’s reason to believe it will still yawn as they progress in their careers. Women fresh out of college get paid less in their first job than men who graduate with the same grades, majors, and choice of occupation. The wage gap really starts to widen, though, around the time when many people decide to have children. Their wage growth starts to drop off right around age 30, when many women have children, and basically flattens out at age 39. Other evidence shows that working women with children make less than women without kids, while having children actually boosts men’s wages.