Income disparity

Income disparity or wage gap is a term used to describe inequities in average pay or salary between socio-economic groups within society, or the inequities in pay between individuals who produce the same work. Income disparity generally occurs when certain groups within society suffer from social inequality within a society.

Common examples include:

• lower average income for females than males (see #Gender gap below)
• Income discrepancy between minority ethnic groups and the majority.
• The income gap between the wealthy and the poor.

Gender gap

In the context of economic inequality, gender gap generally refers to the systemic differences in the social and economic position of men and women, or boys and girls. There is a debate to what extent this is the result of gender differences or because of discrimination.

The widespread mechanization of industry has been accompanied by a shift in gender differentials in highly industrialized countries. However, this closing of the gender gap has not necessarily been followed in less industrialized countries.

Some studies, including those done by the Independent Women's Forum, conclude that when taking into account the following variables when comparing male and female employment within the United States: same job, time worked, benefits (for example maternity leave), women make 98 cents to the dollar of a man.