FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE—UPDATED 

September 12, 2024 

Contact: William Lutz 202-785-5100 

Gender Wage Gap Widens Significantly in 2023 for the First Time in 20 Years, With Women Workers Making Just 82.7 Cents on the Dollar Compared to Men, down from 84 Cents in 2022 

At Current Rates, It Will Take More Than Four Decades for Women to Reach Pay Equity with Men 

Washington, DC — New data released today shows that in 2023, the gender wage gap worsened as women who worked full-time year-round were paid just 82.7 cents for every dollar a man makes. This is down from 84 cents on the dollar in 2022, marking the first time the gender wage gap has widened significantly since 2003. 

The data showed that the gender earnings ratio widened between all working women and working men (including all workers with earnings, whether they worked full-time or part-time) and that women of each of the largest racial and ethnic groups fell behind compared to White non-Hispanic men’s earnings. Among full-time year-round women workers, only Latinas saw a marginal improvement in their earnings compared to White men (from 57.5 to 57.8 cents)—but they are also the group with the lowest earnings by far. 

Below is a statement from the Institute for Women’s Policy Research (IWPR) President and CEO Dr. Jamila K. Taylor. 

“The worsening gender wage gap is a national disgrace and further evidence that market forces are not enough to solve gender inequity. Women continue to get left behind, even in a strong economy,” said Dr. Taylor. “As a single working mom, I know firsthand the challenges women face in the workforce—lack of child care, outright discrimination, racial bias, low wages—and I know how this affects our health and well-being and family’s financial security, as women’s wages often form the backbone of household earnings. We cannot ask women in this country to endure these injustices decade after decade while offering only empty promises. Accelerating the pace of change on this fundamental issue should be a top priority for all policymakers and candidates for office.” 

Findings 

  • In 2023, women working full-time year-round made 82.7 cents per dollar earned by men (a wage gap of 17.3 percent), a significant worsening of the earnings ratio compared to 84.0 cents per dollar in 2022 (a wage gap of 16.0 percent). While the ratio fell, it is still higher than before the COVID-19 pandemic (82.3 percent in 2019). 
  • If progress continues at the same rate as it has for the last two decades, it will still take until 2088 for all women workers to reach pay equity with men. Pay equity between all full-time year-round workers will take over three decades, until 2066.  
  • The gender wage gap for all with earnings (including full-time, part-time, full-year, and part-year workers) also worsened. In 2023, a typical woman was paid 74.8 cents per dollar that a man was paid (a wage gap of 25.2 percent) compared with 78.3 cents on the dollar in 2022 (a wage gap of 21.7 percent). 
  • Gender racial wage gaps widened compared to White men’s earnings across race and ethnicity for all with earnings, and—with the exception of Latinas, who saw a small increase—for full-time year-round workers. In 2023, for every dollar earned by a White man, a typical Latina woman working full-time year-round earned 57.8 cents per dollar, adding up to $32,070 less per year. A Black woman working full-time year-round earned 66.5 cents ($25,480 less), a White woman earned 79.6 cents ($15,500 less), and an Asian woman earned 94.2 cents ($4,430 less).  

To view IWPR’s full fact sheet on the gender wage gap, click here. 

IWPR tracks the latest gender wage gap data year-round and will be tracking pay equity data for individual ethnic groups throughout the year, beginning with Latina Equal Pay Day on October 3, 2024.  

Pay equity will also be a featured topic at IWPR’s Power+ Summit, September 23-24 in Chicago. Please visit www.powerplus2024.com for more information and to register. 

The Institute for Women’s Policy Research strives to win economic equity for all women and eliminate barriers to their full participation in society. As a leading national think tank, IWPR builds evidence to shape policies that grow women’s power and influence, close inequality gaps, and improve the economic well-being of families. Learn more at IWPR.org and follow us on Twitter.  

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