63: Best Of: The Gender Pay Gap: Why Women Still Earn Less & How to Close the Divide

 

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Jobshare Revolution is getting a Glow Up! While we build fresh new episodes, enjoy our “Best Of” series — hand-picked mindset, lesson, and interview episodes with a new intro, chosen to help you implement your job share sooner. Stay tuned!

When selecting “Best Of” episodes, I knew I had to bring The Gender Pay Gap back—not because it was one of our most downloaded episodes (it was!), but because Equal Pay Day moved BACKWARD from March 25th in 2025 to March 26th in 2026.

The gender pay gap has taken a startling downward Turn in 2026.

It’s 2026, and women are STILL making (even) less than men. Here’s what needs to change.

The Gender Pay Gap has widened in 2026! Women are making 81 cents for every dollar a white non-Hispanic male makes in 2026—2 cents less than in 2025! Let's dive into WHY.

Women’s Equal Pay Day isn’t just another date on the calendar—it marks how far into the year women must work to catch up to what men earned last year. And in 2026? The numbers still don’t add up.

In fact, women’s equal pay has taken a startling downward turn in 2026—from 83 cents in 2025—to women making just 81 cents for every dollar that a white non-Hispanic male makes in 2026.

It may not sound like much, but the 2-cent decrease in 2026 represents approximately $13,570 less in annual median earnings for women. Over a 40-year career, this gap can equate to roughly $400,000 to over $1 million in lost income.

The gender pay gap has barely budged, and it’s only gotten worse since 2022, despite decades of advocacy. Women—especially mothers and women of color—continue to earn less than their male counterparts, leading to massive lifetime income losses. But why is this STILL happening? WHY is it getting worse? And more importantly, what actually works to close the gap?

In Episode 63, we dive into The Gender Pay Gap:

  • ✔ WTH the pay gap is 2 cents MORE in 2026 than 2025—and why we need to shout it from the rooftops
  • ✔ The 2025 Gender Disparity Effect – How 450,000 women who left the workforce in the first 7 months of 2025 (if you want to check out our 7-part series on this – start here) AND the dissolution of Affirmative Action might be contributing to the widening gender pay gap.
  • ✔ 2025’s Equal Pay Day stats—for comparison: how far women have come and where we’re still stuck.
  • ✔ Why the pay gap isn’t just about salary—and how caregiving, career breaks, and job types widen the divide.
  • ✔ The truth about workplace flexibility and pay equity—are women penalized for remote and flexible work?
  • ✔ How job sharing creates pay equity and career advancement opportunities for women.
  • ✔ What YOU can do to advocate for yourself and push for real change in the workplace.

For Comparison, here Is Where Women Have fallen The Most By Ethnicity For The Gender Pay Gap in 2026:

During the time of our recording, the 2026 gender pay gap breakdown by ethnicity had not yet been published. Here is a breakdown of the most troubling pay disparities for full-time working women by ethnicity:

  • Black women:  Fell from earning 67 cents in 2025 to earning 66 cents for every dollar a white non-Hispanic man makes in 2026.
  • White women: Fell from earning 80 cents in 2025 to earning 77 cents for every dollar a white non-Hispanic man makes in 2026.

Sadly, the U.S. Census Bureau does not currently collect the necessary information to provide data for LGBTQIA+ people.

**Note: Full 2026 data by ethnicity and more: AAUW Equal Pay Day Calendar 

Why This Episode Matters Now

Women have fought hard for equal pay, but progress has been painfully slow. With new challenges like AI-driven hiring biases and workplace flexibility backlash, we need solutions that actually move the needle. Whether you’re negotiating your salary, re-entering the workforce, or advocating for systemic change, this episode gives you the tools to take action.

Resources MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

More From Me:

Share This Episode!

If you’re tired of waiting for change, send this episode to a friend, colleague, or boss. Let’s turn Equal Pay Day in 2026 into the catalyst we need to DO SOMETHING DRASTIC to start closing the gap.

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️ New Best Of episodes drop every other Tuesday! Thanks for tuning in to Jobshare Revolution podcast!

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Melissa Nicholson job shared for nearly a decade and is the Founder & CEO of Work Muse. Work Muse drives the adoption of job sharing in business as a source of competitive advantage while helping individuals find work-life balance. Join the #JobshareRevolution here.

 

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