The media try to tell us that women (as of 2017) make 80.5 cents for every dollar earned by men, a gender wage gap of 20 percent. This is usually painted as women getting paid less as the same job than a man. The fact is it’s not a pay gap, it’s a wage gap.

The data cited in this gap looks only at the median earnings of salary and full-time wage workers. But it does not take into account for different job positions, past experience, education, having a family, hours worked or other jobs/careers. It has nothing if not very little to do with discrimination and everything to do with personal choices between the sexes. Men are more likely to ask for a raise, work slightly longer days than women, and choose a higher paying career path. Women should be more encouraged to engage in Stem fields if interested. Though ultimately, they should do what they are the most interested in, whether it’s STEM or something else.

Both Title VII and the Equal Pay Act (EPA) make it illegal to discriminate on the basis of sex in payment of employees. If you believe you are being paid more for the same job and the other person didn't ask for a raise, has the same education and experience that you do, then you'll want to file a charge for a Title VII pay discrimination claim. And you must do it within two to three years of the discriminatory pay practice.