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Official Website administered by the State Treasurer and Receiver General of Massachusetts

Deborah B. Goldberg

Program under Massachusetts State Treasurer Deborah B. Goldberg

Census Data Show Widening Wage Gap With Age

June 14, 2017

NBC News Better // Lisa Tolin

Data show that women make approximately 83 cents for every dollar earned by their white, non-Hispanic male counterparts. New research shows the wage gap widening significantly when women come into their 40s. When college-educated women first enter the workforce, the wage gap is the narrowest with a pay ratio of about 89 percent. However, once women turn 45, this pay ratio is a mere 57 percent. The 43 percent gap in women's wages is due to a variety of factors, but one researcher hypothesizes that it is largely due to women opting for a flexible work environment over a higher salary, a phenomenon called "choice under constraint."