Gender Roles in the American Working Class CC#3.1

In an expository article published to The Economist entitled, "When women dare to outearn men," by C.O. Berlin, a writer for The Economist, references several published articles discussing the wage of the husband and it's impact on women's careers.  The issue of wage inequality is one of the most constraining for women's careers. 

According to Berlin, "In a country like America, in which men on average earn more than women, it follows almost naturally that the wife often earns less." Our society has been based on the traditional belief that the man or husband in a marriage should have the responsibility of providing for himself and/or his family.  Although women's rights for equality have been recognized, their wages in the work place are generally still lower than men. 

Furthermore, Berlin states, "Women with the potential to earn more than their husbands quit their job altogether more often than otherwise similar women in comparable families." In some cases if the husband earns less than his wife, he might be expected to do more at home.  Our society has trained men to believe that the wife's place is in the home and that they should not have as much responsibility as the husband in the workplace; thus, if a woman has a higher position at work than her husband, she may quit her job to pacify him.

Researchers, Marianne Bertrand, Emir Kamenica, Jessica Pan state, "As long as the woman earns less, her income does not cause trouble in the marriage." When a woman earns more than her male partner or husband troubles begin to occur within the relationship.  The simple fact of a woman earning more than her spouse has an impact on the divorce rate in our country.

Berlin states, "Economists wonder why people with rational expectations enter such a marriage at all." Traditional beliefs about the wages of men and women are slowly changing, and as a result so is the tradition of getting married at a young age.  Young men and women in our country are now focusing much more on their careers and wages.

In conclusion, we know that norms and traditions are stubborn.  Changing tradition takes time and possibly the revision of certain policies.  Society cannot afford to waste the potential that women offer to our economy.  We must play an active part in supporting policies in the work place that equalize the gender gap.