As a college student about to enter the workforce, I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about my future — what job I’ll get, how I’ll grow and, honestly, how much I’ll be paid. What I didn’t expect to still be wondering about — in 2026, mind you — is whether I’ll be paid fairly just because I’m a woman.
We hear all the time that things are “better now” and that the gender pay gap isn’t really an issue anymore. But that’s not true. In 2024, women who were full-time wage and salary workers had median usual weekly earnings that were 83% of those of male employees, according to a report by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. That might not sound like a huge difference at first, but over time, it adds up to thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of dollars lost across a career. For women of color, that gap is even bigger.
What frustrates me the most is that people love to explain this away by saying it’s about “choices,” as if women choose lower-paying jobs or to step back for family. But even when you compare men and women in the same roles, with similar education and experience, women still get paid less. The American Association of University Women reports that a gender pay gap exists in nearly every occupation and at every level of education, showing that disparities persist even among similarly qualified workers. That’s not about choice; that’s about a system that still isn’t equal.
This isn’t just a women’s issue, it’s a community issue. When women are paid less, it affects entire families. A lot of women today are primary or co-breadwinners, meaning their income directly supports households. In fact, a Pew Research Center study found that “16% of marriages have wives as the sole or primary breadwinner, and nearly 29% of couples share earnings equally,” which demonstrates how critical women’s income is to family stability. Lower pay means more financial stress, fewer opportunities and less stability.
From a business perspective, this doesn’t make sense. Companies are constantly talking about wanting the best talent, strong leadership and good culture. How can you expect people to stay motivated and loyal if they’re not being paid fairly? Pay equity is the morally correct thing to do, but it’s also good business.
So why is this still happening?
One big issue is transparency. Most people have no idea what their coworkers are making, which makes it almost impossible to recognize or challenge pay gaps. Another issue is negotiation. Women are often told to advocate for themselves, but when they do, they can be labeled as aggressive or difficult, according to the 2019 Harvard Business Review. Women don’t want to speak up because of how the system responds when they do.
That’s why this problem can’t just be solved by telling women to work harder or negotiate better. It needs real change. Companies should be required to review their pay structures, be more transparent and fix disparities when they find them. Policies like paid parental leave and flexible work also matter, because they help level the playing field instead of penalizing people for having lives outside of work.
As students, we have more power than we think. We’re about to enter these workplaces. We can ask questions about salary. We can pay attention to company values. We can choose where we work based on how they treat their employees. And we can talk about this issue instead of ignoring it.
The environment of the workforce I’ll soon be walking into matters more than how much I’ll make. I don’t want to have to question whether I’m being undervalued. And I don’t want other women to either.
We’re told to work hard and prove ourselves. But the reality is, we shouldn’t have to work harder just to be paid equally. That’s not ambition; that’s inequality working against us. And it’s something we shouldn’t be okay with anymore.
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Natalie Brogan is a junior majoring in marketing. She is a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma and was previously a member of Miami University Women in Marketing.
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