Salary Gap for Females in the Media Industry Essay Example

Media and communication form an integral part of society. They are a mode of spreading information throughout the world without any bias. However, there has been notable bias in the payment between male and female journalists where men tend to earn more. In a world that is making advancements in ensuring that there is an equality among the genders, little has been done in the media industry. The film industry has been breaching the Equal Pay Act with men earning over 9% than women. The salary gap varies in different media stations and women are always in the bottom quartile. Companies tend to take advantage of the lack of robust frameworks seeking regulation and disclosure in the salaries of their employees. Consequently, the media firms do not explain these disparities. However, efforts are being made by the equality ministry to ensure that companies publish their accounts on how they pay their employees. The paper below, therefore, will address the salary gap between men and women in the media sector.

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Research shows that despite having the same level of education as their male counterparts, women get less pays in most jobs. Females are at a disadvantage due to career gaps that may be caused by factors such as the need to take care of an elderly relative at home. According to Bishu and Alkadry, disparities are due to non-competence factors such as age, gender and ethnicity. These variances create an advantage for some people while disadvantaging others (Bishu & Alkadry 66). The lack of equal pays limits women from accessing promotions and other work benefits. Social networks and capital influence the disparities in the film sector (Pires 4). These, among other sources, will be utilized in analyzing the reasons for the salary gap.

I argue that the salary differences between men and women are unfair since it is a form of discrimination. It is imperative that this problem is fixed since it is hurting many women and demotivating girls who may want to be engaged in the film industry. Additionally, the societal norms that make women seem like lesser beings are affecting careers and the social structure of the community. Despite women working hard to fix their jobs and families, there has been no appreciation of the same (Tobitt). Regardless, the blame is on single mothers for not meeting their family obligations despite the lack of equal chances. Therefore, the solution to the payment issues does not lie in blaming women for not earning more. There should be a conducive environment for them to develop themselves and utilize their capabilities.

This topic is interesting since the media industry has the same ills that it exposes. Inequality is among the issues that the sector has condemned on mainstream media, but the same is being perpetuated from within. Additionally, most people think that all filmmakers and actors earn similar pays regardless of gender. It would be fascinating to note that this is not the case and this creates an opportunity for many students to evaluate their specializations in the communication industry (Pires 12). Despite the prominence in the wage gap, women and young girls should not be discouraged since steps are being taken to ensure that equality is attained.

Despite efforts to reduce these disparities in the 1980s, the 15% gap has been constant up to date. Educational attainment and work experience are the conventional explanations for these gaps (Graf, Brown & Patten). Statistics show that in every four women, one of them made less money than the money in the same job group. Inversely, men rarely experience this form of gender discrimination. Responsibilities such as motherhood put women at a disadvantage since they create a career gap in their service. Such duties end up having a long-term impact on their earnings. Usually, 25% of women face a negative impact when they leave work to take care of their families. As a result of such frustrations, most women quit their jobs (Graf, Brown & Patten). Thus, the salary gap can be attributed to the primary care duties that women assume as they grow older and start families. Companies should create environments that allow women to perform their care responsibilities while scaling the corporate ladder.

According to a fact sheet by the National Partnership for women and families, the median annual pay between women and men has a disparity of over 10,000 dollars per annum (America's Women and The Wage Gap 2). Job segregation, workplace harassment, and lack of strong policies drive the gender wage gap. The failure of women to participate in the economy results in women losing over 900 billion dollars annually on a collective basis (America's Women and The Wage Gap 2). The loss of wages leads to poor living conditions for some women and their families since they cannot set aside enough money to save and reinvest.

Madeline Berg notes that Hollywood is one of the areas where women face marginalization despite idolizing its actresses. People such as Jennifer Lawrence have spoken about this misfortune, but nothing much has taken place. Despite being the highest paid actress in 2015, her pay was 28 million dollars less than that of Robert Downey, one of the highest paid actors at the time (Berg). She attributes lesser salaries to lack of negotiating skills amongst female actresses and the lack of back-end pays. Another reason why women are underpaid is due to their low representation on the casting screens which translates to fewer opportunities thus limiting their bargaining power. Despite arguments that women should take up 50% of the roles, it is currently unachievable since there are only 21 lead female actors in the top 100 films in Hollywood (Berg). Thus, the lack of negotiating skills is a factor causing the disparities in pay.

To eliminate this problem requires the elimination of negotiation. Studies have shown that women perform poorly in negotiating their pays (Elsesser). It is due to this factor that ladies accept any offer presented by their employees regardless of the terms. In most instances, 57% of men ask for better salaries while only 7% of women get a chance to negotiate for more wages (Butler, and Sweney). Despite the annual pay rises, women never catch up with the salaries of their colleagues who negotiate better starting salaries in every industry. Therefore, eliminating negotiations can be one of the ways to reduce the bias and problems experienced by ladies.

Berg also notes that inequality is also seen in the number of directors and scriptwriters who are an integral part of filming. In her article, she indicates that there are only 1.9% and 11.2% of directors and scriptwriters respectively (Berg). This further aggravates the salary gap, and it has created a notion that movies comprised of women cannot sell in the industry. However, companies such as Disney are making efforts to feature women in their lead roles due to global diversity and calls for inclusion. Creating safe spaces for women to compete effectively will be one of the things that will narrow the salary gap between men and women in the media industry. Hence, the roles of women in the media industry have caused a disparity in the salary gap between the separate genders. Women, therefore, should be allowed to display their talents and abilities in the main screens to ensure that they create value for themselves.

Racial ethnicity is also a factor that precipitates the difference in pays between women of color and their male counterparts who are of White origin (Berg). Native American women, for example, 59 cents for every dollar that a White male actor makes. Hispanic women are the worst affected by this difference since they earn about 56 dollars for every dollar made by a White man (America's Women and The Wage Gap 1). Lesser opportunities for women of color are among the factors that cause the pay gap between women in the film industry and their male counterparts. According to Viola Davis, more exposure will result in recognition of women, and this will be an avenue for them to advocate for better wages (Berg).

Despite efforts to implement legislation on equal pay in the United Kingdom, only 8% of the workers in the film industry have no differences in their salaries (Full Scale of Gender Pay Gap in UK Media Industry Revealed - Women in Film & TV). Other gaps are due to the number of hours put in at work. Most of the firms in the UK have significant disparities between men and women despite women making up most of the workforce population. Pay and bonus gaps are prevalent with margins of up to 40% in companies such as Columbia Pictures, Disney and Warner Bros (Full Scale of Gender Pay Gap in UK Media Industry Revealed - Women in Film & TV). Sexism in the bonus pay results to women being shortchanged even in companies where they put in the same effort as their colleagues. The sexist nature in the payment of bonuses is due to minimal scrutiny and weak policies in the companies. Eliminating sexism when rewarding employees is one of the stepping stones for equal pay in the media industry.

Stereotypes against women and glass barriers are other reasons why there is a huge salary gap in the media industry. These factors have resulted in the underrepresentation of women. However, the stakeholders in the film industry do not treat this as an inequality since it is a culture that has been normalized. Additionally, most players tend to focus on the onscreen acts and forfeit the gaps behind the scenes for women who may be technicians. Christine Pires notes disparities exist above and below the line even in wage positions and for employees who get paid on an hourly basis (Pires 12). These factors have been overlooked by people who insist that this is normal as people should "fight" for their pays even in instances where either gender have played the same roles. She points out that the film industry is made to appear like an area where people should be struggling to get what they work for. Eliminating stereotypes is critical in getting rid of the discrepancies in this industry.

An article in the Guardian noted that there is a 7.4% gap in the editorial paper. At the Guardian, 65% of the highest paid employees are men while women comprise 57% of those who are in the low pay bracket (Butler, and Sweney). The reason for this disparity is due to more men being in senior and mid-level management. Ladies, on the other hand, have been confined to sales and marketing departments where they do not make as much as their colleagues. In the non-editorial roles, the gap widens since the hourly pay differs by 17.2% with men earning more. The paper, however, through their editor-in-chief, says that they aim to narrow the gap and achieve equal pay with a 50:50 balance (Butler, and Sweney). Realizing this requires the entity to create more spaces and opportunities that allow women to compete at the same level as their colleagues. Ensuring that women occupy senior management levels offers a platform for them to mentor others. Additionally, they will have the space to raise their concerns and advocate for better pays to everyone within the company and the media industry. Thus, ensuring that women occupy a managerial position will help in narrowing the salary gap.

Conclusion

Another reason why there is a salary gap for females in the media industry is that inequality has been normalized in other sectors. Many organizations reflect trends in society. The Guardian, however, pays women more bonuses than men with a rate of up to 74% since the company maximized its reward at the sales department where ladies are dominant (Butler, and Sweney). Due to this culture in the media industry, other sectors such as the travel groups find leeway to pay some of their employees twice as much as they pay the females. Therefore, the normalization of inequality as part of th...