The gender pay gap is driven at least by the buildup

stereotypes, and the labels that are put on children from a young age. The gender pay gap is
driven at least by the buildup of many occasions over the course of a women’s lives when they
are treated differently than their male peers. “At a time when parental influence is key, parents
are often more likely to expect their sons rather than their daughters, to work in science,
technology, engineering, or mathematics fields, even when their daughters perform at the same
level in mathematics (OECD 2015)” (Schieder and Gould) . This leads to daughters’ brain-
washed that there are certain jobs for them to aim for. Doctors, lawyers, mathematicians,
scientist. These jobs become a fantasy to them. Parents must not bring down a girl’s self-esteem
from the beginning. That leads to them shooting for second-class jobs, which is yet another
factor that supports and widens the gender wage gap.
On the other hand, some people may say that women would not be paid equally because
of how many times they are not at work throughout the year. Motherhood and fatherhood affect
careers differently. According to “College-Educated Women Struggle to Even the Wage Gap,”
“Mothers are more likely than fathers (or other women) to work part time, take leave, or take a
break from the workforce—factors that negatively affect wages. Among women who graduated
from college in 1992-93, more than 23 percent of mothers were out of the workforce in 2003,
and another 17 percent were working part time. Less than 2 percent of fathers were out of the
workforce in 2003, and less than 2 percent were working part time” (Dey and Hill). These are
natural problems that women must face (pregnancy, periods, labor). Because of how long women
are out of work, on average, mothers earn less money than women without children earn. But
both groups earn less than men earn. At the end of the day, it is still not fair.

In conclusion, the gender wage gap is real—and hurts women across the board by
suppressing their earnings and making it harder to balance work and family. (Schieder and
Gould). Numerous causes contribute to the wage gap, i.e., discrimination and bias. Women,
families, and the country cannot afford discrimination and lower wages. Women have their own