Fair and Unjust Wages During The Victorian Period

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"A fair day's wage for a fair day's work" (Carlyle). Thomas Carlyle once said this quote during the Victorian period. The quote refers to how one should have the ability to receive, in return, what they put forth. Therefore, if a person works all day, then that person should be able to receive enough money to be able to live comfortably. However, that is not the case. There are many people in this world that live pay check to pay check, if they are lucky. This is a distinct problem that has been going on for many years, along with the gender wage gap. In the world of today, women have taken the stance of being able to do more; therefore, the gender wage gap should be nonexistent.
Although women have progressed in their role in society, they are still placed below men. As a result, there is a distinctive wage gap between working men and women. As of in 2009, recently graduated college women were getting paid an average of eighty-two percent of what males were earning (Dugas). This shows how men are constantly ranked above women, but only in specific jobs. Women receive the same amount of money when working in the fields of "bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks" (Dugas). These jobs portray the roles of women, therefore, thinking women are only equipped for certain jobs. This degrades women by only thinking that women have the capacity to accomplish jobs resembling the role of women in the household. However, the reasons given for why women receive less money than men are "their college majors, occupation, and the number of hours they work" (Dugas). It is explainable if the reason for getting paid less is the occupation, but there is no explanation for when there is a man and woman working in the same field and the woman i...

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...ve to be done because women should receive the same opportunities as men. This also goes along with unjust wages. People should not have to work and worry about if they have enough money to pay for their necessities. If one works, then that one should be able to live comfortably and provide for the family. As a result, fair wages should be enforced.

Works Cited

Brian, Engelland. "Is Your Company Paying "Just" Wages?." Catholic Social Teaching in Action. CAPP-USA, n.d. Web. 23 Apr. 2014. .
Carlyle, Thomas . "Thomas Carlyle." Brainy Quote. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Apr. 2014. .
Dugas, Christine. "Gender pay gap persists." USA Today. N.p., 24 Oct. 2012. Web. 21 Mar. 2014. .

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