Shining a Light on Wage Inequality: Equal Pay Day 2025

Equal Pay Day highlights the ongoing wage gap between men and women in the U.S., emphasizing financial inequality in the workforce. This symbolic date marks how many extra days the median woman must work into the new year to match the median man's earnings from the prior year. Established in 1996 by the National Committee on Pay Equity, Equal Pay Day raises awareness about wage disparities between genders. In 2025, Equal Pay Day fell on March 25.

When the Equal Pay Act was enacted in 1963, women earned 59 cents for every dollar men earned. While progress has been made, achieving true pay equity remains a challenge. A recent report from JPMorgan Chase projects global gender parity may take another 134 years, with only 68.5% of the gender gap closed across economic participation, education, health, and political representation. Their 2024 analysis across 146 countries reveals that if current trends persist, global gender equality will not be realized until the 22nd century.

PayScale’s 2025 report shows U.S. women earn 83 cents for every dollar men earn on average—a figure unchanged from 2024—reflecting stagnation in closing the pay gap. This figure represents the uncontrolled pay gap, which compares the median salaries of all men and women, highlighting how wealth and power are distributed along gender lines within society. Women of color face even larger pay gaps due to systemic inequities.

Another way to analyze this data is through the controlled pay gap, which compares the median salaries of men and women with similar jobs and qualifications. This reveals persistent inequities that accumulate over a career despite smaller differences. Even a seemingly minor pay gap can accumulate substantially over time, indicating that unjustified pay differences persist even when controlling for factors like job title, education, and experience.

Numerous complex and interconnected factors contribute to the enduring gender pay gap. The impact of parental status is a significant area of discussion, often framed as the "motherhood penalty" versus the potential "fatherhood bonus." PayScale’s data shows working mothers earn just 75 cents for every dollar earned by fathers, while childless women earn 88 cents compared to their male counterparts. The JPMorgan Chase report corroborates this, identifying the heavier burden from unpaid family care work, especially childcare, as a globally common factor holding females back from active labor participation. This understanding is prompting more employers to consider enhancing benefits that support working parents and individuals with caregiving responsibilities.

The uncontrolled pay gap tends to widen with age, dropping from 86 cents for workers aged 20–29 to 72 cents for those over 45. Furthermore, the uncontrolled gap exists across all levels of educational attainment, demonstrating that education alone does not eliminate the wage disparity. Women often experience slower rates of promotion and lower pay compared to men as they advance in their careers. At the executive level, women earn only 72 cents per dollar compared to men; even when controlling for job characteristics, a gap of 93 cents persists.

Some good news: Oregon is one of seven states that has shown the controlled pay gap closed for the last two years.  However, Oregon still shows 85 cents on the dollar when it comes to the uncontrolled gap.  Some states have widened their gaps for 2025, and the overall national picture suggests that significant systemic change is still needed across the United States.

The growing emphasis on pay transparency and the implementation of pay equity laws offer hope for greater accountability and the potential to expose and address more of these wage disparities within organizations.

Research from SHRM indicates that over 70% of HR professionals acknowledge that women face discrimination in the labor market. While some positive developments have been noted, such as increased female labor force participation (according to JPMorgan Chase), the persistent pay gap remains a critical obstacle to achieving true gender equality in the workplace.

Achieving pay equity requires sustained efforts to address biases in hiring and promotion while supporting working parents.

If you have questions about pay equity and its implications for your organization, we encourage you to reach out to our Compensation Team for expert consulting assistance.