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Despite women making up 47 percent of the workforce, only 3 percent of Fortune 500 CEO's are female. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics women working full time jobs earned an average of only 80 percent of what men in the exact same positions in 2008.
Kate Lorenz of Career Builder.com compiled the 25 Best-Paying Jobs for Women, including a comparison of what men are paid in the same position. There is a large gap between the amount women and men make from the time they begin work, and women continue to be outpaced by men in rank and growth of salary.
"Only when women begin their post-MBA career at mid-management or above do they achieve parity in position with men -- a situation that accounted for only 10 percent of the women and 19 percent of the men surveyed," Lorenz notes.
"Whatever the cause," Lorenz continues "the BLS reports there are only a handful of occupations where women's earnings are equal to or exceed men's including construction and extraction occupations; special education teachers; installation, maintenance and repair occupations; life, physical and social science technicians; and counselors."
The list of best paying jobs for women is made up of jobs where women earn $1,000 per week or more, according to the BLS. The good news is that there are some decent paying jobs out there for women. The bad news is that there are no jobs listed in which women match or exceed the amount of money men make in the same position. Hmmm. Maybe it's time to revisit that old Equal Rights Amendment that never passed.
Pharmacists
Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,647
Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,914
Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 86.1%
Chief executives
Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,603
Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,999
Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 80.2%
Lawyers
Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,509
Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,875
Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 80.5%
Computer software engineers
Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,351
Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,555
Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 86.9%
Computer and information systems managers
Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,260
Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,641
Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 76.8%
Physicians and surgeons
Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,230
Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,911
Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 64.4%
Management analysts
Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,139
Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,391
Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 81.9%
Human resources managers
Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,137
Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,433
Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 79.3%
Speech-language pathologists
Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,124
Men - Median weekly earnings: *
Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: **
Computer and mathematical occupations
Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,088
Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,320
Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 82.4%
Computer scientists and systems analysts
Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,082
Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,240
Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 87.3%
Physician assistants
Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,077
Men - Median weekly earnings: **
Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: **
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Medical and health services managers
Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,066
Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,504
Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 70.9%
Physical scientists, all other
Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,061
Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,535
Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 69.1%
Postsecondary teachers
Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,056
Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,245
Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 84.8%
Marketing and sales managers
Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,024
Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,601
Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 64%
Physical therapists
Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,019
Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,329
Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 76.7%
Occupational therapists
Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,016
Men - Median weekly earnings: **
Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: **
Registered nurses
Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,011
Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,168
Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 86.6%
Managers, all other
Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,010
Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,359
Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 74.3%
Psychologists
Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,004
Men - Median weekly earnings: **
Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: **
Computer programmers
Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,003
Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,261
Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 79.5%
Architecture and engineering occupations
Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,001
Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,286
Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 77.8%
Advertising and promotions managers
Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,000
Men - Median weekly earnings: **
Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: **
Education administrators
Women - Median weekly earnings: $1,000
Men - Median weekly earnings: $1,398
Women's earnings as percent of men's in same occupation: 71.5%
*No data or data that do not meet publication criteria.
** Data not shown where the male employment base is less than 50,000.
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