The Case for Comparable Worth

Abstract

Comparable worth is a necessary and feasible remedy for the systematic, sex‐related pay inequities found in most contemporary work organizations. It is necessary because discriminatory pay practices of the past were not fully addressed by equal employment opportunity legislation, and their effects have been perpetuated by conventional pay administration practices. It is feasible because it can be assessed and implemented simply, often using data already available, at a relatively small cost to the organization. Arguments against the necessity of comparable worth are based largely on academic studies of pay discrimination, which differ from comparable worth studies in their context, purpose, methods, and results. Arguments against the feasibility of comparable worth center on potential costs and technical criticisms of comparable worth pay policies, objections contradicted by the facts of actual comparable worth implementation.