Does Race or Gender Matter More to
Your Paycheck?
How Can You And the Company Get Pay
Equity?
Deborah P. Ashton, Ph.D.
About the Speaker
Deborah Ashton, Ph.D.
President | Planet Perspective
1
Experience
• Headed diversity &
inclusion at HarleyDavidson, Novant
Health, Medtronic,
Darden Restaurants
and Argonne National
Laboratory
• Former Chief of Test
Development &
Validation,
Commonwealth of
Massachusetts
2
3
Strategist & Author | Six Pillars
of Diversity and Inclusion TM .
Published in Harvard Business
Review, Diversity MBA, Diversity
Executive, and by the Institute
for Diversity in Health
Management, American Hospital
Association
Ph.D., Clinical Psychology
and Public Practice |
Harvard University
Deborah Ashton, Ph.D.
Learning Outcomes
Outcome 1
Have an approach
to evaluate pay
equity in your
company.
▫ Develop HR
metrics
▫ Develop HR
processes
Outcome 2
Be mindful of own
and others’
unconscious bias in
the workplace.
Outcome 3
Make personal
action plan to
address pay equity
for self
Deborah Ashton, Ph.D.
Questions
1
2
3
Question 1
What is the pay gap?
Question 2
What metrics can HR use
to monitor and reduce the
gap?
4
Question 4
How can HR and line
management address
unconscious bias?
5 Question 5
How can women address
the pay gap?
Question 3
What processes can HR
and line implement to
close the gap?
Deborah Ashton, Ph.D.
1
What Is The Pay Gap?
The difference in the median
earnings of full-time workers in one
group in comparison to another
group, e.g., the median earnings of
women to men.
Deborah Ashton, Ph.D.
6
Ashton, D. Does Race or Gender Matter More to Your Paycheck?, HBR.org, June 10, 2014
16-24 Year Olds As A Percentage of Full-Time
Workers by Race/Ethnicity and Gender
White
NonHispanic
8.8%
Black
Alone
8.0%
Asian
Alone
6.5%
Hispanic Males (all Females
All Races races) (all races)
12.4%
Source: Department of Labor, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (January 22, 2014).
Usual Weekly Earnings Of Wage And Salary Workers, Fourth Quarter 2013,
News Release, USDL-14-0094.
http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/wkyeng.pdf
8.7%
8.7%
2013 Educational Attainment: Population 25 Years
and Over, by Race, Hispanic Origin & Gender
(Civilian noninstitutionalized population1)
Years of School Completed
White
NonHispanic
Black
Alone
Asian Hispanic Males Females
(all
Alone All Races (all
races) races)
4%
5%
19%
5%
5%
8th Grade or less
2%
Some High School
5%
11%
5%
15%
7%
7%
High School Graduate/GED
30%
34%
19%
30%
30%
29%
Some College
17%
20%
10%
14%
17%
17%
Associate Degree
Bachelor Degree/No Advanced
Degree
11%
10%
7%
7%
9%
11%
22%
14%
31%
11%
20%
20%
Advanced Degree
13%
8%
23%
4%
12%
11%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey, 2013 Annual Social and Economic Supplement
http://www.census.gov/hhes/socdemo/education/data/cps/2013/tables.html
1 Plus armed forces living off post or with their families on post. (Rounding error: total percent may be >
100%)
Source: Table 9. Quartiles and
selected deciles of usual weekly
earnings of full-time wage and
salary workers by selected
characteristics, 2013 annual
averages U.S. Department of
Labor, U.S. Bureau of Labor
Statistics (January 22, 2014).
Usual Weekly Earnings Of Wage
And Salary Workers, Fourth
Quarter 2013, News Release,
USDL-14-0094.
http://www.bls.gov/news.release/
pdf/wkyeng.pdf
Busting Myths
• White Women Make More Than
Minority Men
• Companies Have To Pay More
For Talented Women Of Color
• Women Make Less Because of
the Occupation They Choose
1
0
10/31/2012
•
Novant Health: Enter Presentation Title in Footer
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Source: SHRM, September , 2014 cover
2014 Gender Comparison of Median Weekly
Salaries of Full-time Workers by Occupation
Engineering Techs
Physicians & Surgeons
Lawyers
Software Developer
Computer System Analyst
Men
Women
Personal Financial Advisors
Business & Finance
Financial Mgrs.
HR Managers
Marketing & Sales Mgrs.
Chief Executive
$-
$500 $1,000$1,500$2,000$2,500
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Household Data and
Annual Averages 39. Median weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by
detailed occupation and sex 2014 http://www.bls.gov/cps/cpsaat39.pdf
Large Group Discussion
• Why do you think there is a difference in pay,
even after education is held constant?
• What can be done to impact change?
Organizational
Intentional Behavior
• Metrics
• Processes
Things to Know -- Metrics
A
The level of knowledge,
responsibility and
contribution to the
organization for each job,
e.g., complexity or
physical hazards.
B
Job related variables
C
Promotions, assignments,
performance evaluations
Deborah Ashton, Ph.D.
Small Group Discussion -- Metrics
A
2
What Metrics Can HR
Use To Monitor
And Reduce The Gap?
BB
Take 10 minutes to
generate metrics to
monitors.
Small group reports two
examples
Deborah Ashton, Ph.D.
Possible Actions
• Compare median pay
for women & men in
comparable positions
• Other possible actions?
• Project estimate of
promotability or
trajectory of careers
based on equitable
development of talent
Deborah Ashton, Ph.D.
Things to Know -- Processes
A
The value the position
brings to the organization
B
The criteria and formula
used to determine pay
and merit increases or
bonuses
C
Factors being considered
to determine promotions
D
Who is accountable for
pay equity and equitable
development of staff.
Deborah Ashton, Ph.D.
Small Group Discussion - Processes
3
A
Take 10 minutes to
generate processes to
close the pay gap.
B
Small group reports two
examples
What Processes Can HR
And Line Management
Implement To
Close The Gap?
Deborah Ashton, Ph.D.
Possible Actions
3
Implementation of Processes by HR
And Management Line
• Have annual pay equity
analysis under the
auspices of the Legal
Department to rectify
any pay gap.
• Make adjustments
seamlessly, during
normal pay adjustments
and/or merit increases.
Deborah Ashton, Ph.D.
Possible Actions
3
Implementation of Processes by HR
And Management Line
• Discuss the distribution of
employees’ pay increases in
a peer group setting,
facilitated by HR,
• Base offers on the value the
position brings to the
organization and not what
the candidate earned
previously
• Monitor promotions to
ensure bias free process
• Hold line management
accountable for equity
• Have succession plans that
include women and people
of color.
• Require individual
development plans
Deborah Ashton, Ph.D.
Things to Know -- Biases
A
Everyone has biases—
conscious and
unconscious
B
Biases are based on
socialization, i.e., women
tend to have the same
biases/stereotypes as
men regarding women.
C
Intersectionality
amplifies biases, e.g.,
gender plus race—
women of color.
Deborah Ashton, Ph.D.
Small Group Discussion -- Biases
4
How Can HR And Line
Management Address
Unconscious Bias?
A
Develop a list of as many
intersectionalities as you
can in 5 minutes.
B
Group with the most
intersectionalities wins.
Deborah Ashton, Ph.D.
Possible Actions
• Have managers discuss
and defend employees’
pay increases in a peer
group setting with an
HR facilitator.
• Have transparency in
compensation, e.g.,
publish the salary and
wage range for job
titles and job groups.
• Before acting on their
perceptions, HR and
line management need
to take a mindful pause
then listen and get
clarification.
• Tactfully challenge
others’ biases with
observations that
counter their
perceptions
Deborah Ashton, Ph.D.
Individual
Intentional Behavior
• Count Off
• Rotate to a New Small Group
Things To Know
A
Science, technology,
engineering and math
(STEM) occupations and
MBA, JD or MD
occupations pay higher
salaries.
B
Traditionally maledominated professions
pay more than
traditionally femaledominated professions.
C
Know your worth
Women need to influence
what they can control.
Deborah Ashton, Ph.D.
Small Group Discussion – What You Can Do
A
5
How Can Women
Address The Pay Gap?
Take 3 minutes to
individually generate
individual intentional
behaviors.
B
Take 5 minutes to share
with group.
C
Each group share 2
examples with large
group.
Deborah Ashton, Ph.D.
Possible Actions
Earn degrees in science,
technology, engineering and
math or earn a MBA, JD or
MD
Enter traditionally maledominated professions—
engineers, lawyers, etc.
Negotiate your salary at hire
and at promotion
Negotiate your title at hire
and at promotion
Work with your supervisor in
developing your individual
development plan
Research salaries by position
by region
Deborah Ashton, Ph.D.
The Path To Pay Equity &
A Level ‘Paying Field’
• Organizations Correcting
Underlying Systemic
Processes And Metrics
• Women Leveraging A Level
Playing Field
2
8
Questions
?
Deborah Ashton, Ph.D.
Readings
What HR Can Do to Fix the Gender Pay
Gap, Harvard Business Review, Dec. 2,
2014, (Please click
https://hbr.org/2014/12/what-hr-cando-to-fix-the-gender-pay-gap )
Does Race or Gender Matter More to
Your Paycheck? Harvard Business
Review, June 10, 2014, (Please click
http://blogs.hbr.org/2014/06/doesrace-or-gender-matter-more-toyour-paycheck/ )
Deborah Ashton, Ph.D.
Contact the Speaker
Deborah P. Ashton, Ph.D.
Ashton@post.harvard.edu
+1 407-810-7822
https://www.linkedin.com/profile/publicprofile-settings?trk=prof-edit-editpublic_profile
Deborah Ashton, Ph.D.