Study Finds Significant Gender Pay Gap Among Pediatricians in the United States

Women now make up a majority of all pediatrians in the United States but two studies published in the journal Pediatrics shows that women in the profession report earning less than men and having more household and child care responsibilities at home.

Women pediatricians surveyed in 2016 earned $51,000 less, or 78 percent of what men earned, without any statistical adjustment for specialty, work hours, workload, work-setting, and work-family characteristics. When adjustments were made to compare pediatricians with similar characteristics, women made 94 percent of what was earned by their male counterparts. The authors write that women “may accept lower salaries for nonmonetary benefits, such as fewer work hours, flexibility of work hours, and location or community of work place.”

A second study looks at household responsibilities and work-life balance and found women were more likely to assume primary ownership of most household tasks even when adjusting for part-time and spouse/partner status. Women pediatricians were more likely than men to report having primary responsibility for 13 of 16 household responsibilities, such as cleaning, cooking, and routine care of children. The authors also found that women were less happy with how responsibilities were being shared and that work-life balance was anything but balanced.

“Gender Differences in Earnings of Early- and Midcareer Pediatricians,” may be accessed here.

“Gender Discrepancies Related to Pediatrician Work-Life Balance and Household Responsibilities,” may be accessed here.