No progress in the last decade, and little expected in the next.
Without huge shifts in the workplace — as well as in expectations for women on the home front — experts say there is no chance the gender wage gap will be closed.
Given the slow progress in the past 10-plus years, “what that’s telling us is that over time, we’ve done as much as we could given the structure we have and given the responsibilities that we typically put on women as opposed to men — this is where the gap has gotten stuck,” said Wilfrid Laurier University Prof. Tammy Schirle, an economist and expert in gender pay issues.
“However you measure it, a large part of it comes from the fact that women are the primary caregivers — both for children and the elderly — so they’re often limited to taking those types of jobs that can accommodate the schedules that come with taking on those responsibilities.