While I agree with most of the article, and look forward to reading the Salary Survey, I must say I was surprised to see the following in the article:

"That still stinks for women and it's ridiculous. Women can do the same job and I don't think the risk of a woman leaving is any worse than that of a man. "

This is a very typical knee jerk reaction. "Everyone is equal, so therefore they should receive equally". And in Utopia that will be wonderful. Back here in the real world, there are certain mitigating factors that need to be taken into account.

Before I'm flamed or bombarded with hate mail, let me say this - anyone doing my job as well as I do it, putting in the hours I put in, with a similar background, etc., should receive the same compensation that I receive for the job. This is regardless of race, gender, creed, and all of the other things that make us individuals.

HOWEVER, I will use my wife as an example. She's a speech language pathologist at a nursing and rehabilitative facility. She's very good at her job. She also teaches part time at a university. She has degrees and certificates out the wazoo. She's been published in her trade journals. With all of this, she could be making more money, but she'd have to leave the facility where she currently works, and she is unwilling to do so. Why? Because she has off every Wednesday where she currently is, has a boss who is understanding of her time constraints (read: doesn't complain when my wife is late to work), and is comfortable knowing that when she leaves to have children, she'll be able to come back on a per diem basis to provide coverage when it's convenient for her.

The Dice survey results don't mention the fact that while most women earn less for certain jobs, they also tend to take jobs that fit their lifestyles better. Men usually go for more money. Men are more willing to relocate for a better salary. Men don't take maternity leave. My boss knows that when she hired me, as long as the job kept me engaged and they kept me happy with my pay and benefits, that I'd be here for a long time. I'm not going to take off for 3 months on "family leave", requiring them to acquire/train a temp to fill in for me. I am, however, going to work nights, weekends, etc., whatever it takes to get the job done.

I've worked with women who outperform me, who don't take family leave, and who have therefore been duly compensated. I've also worked with women who have gone on multiple maternity leaves, and with women who have used up all of the maternity leave, and then told the company they weren't returning. The fact of the matter is that since there is less of a chance that I'll get pregnant, there is less of a chance of me leaving (either for months at a time, or altogether). Am I saying women should be penalized for this? No. What I'm saying is that women (like men) make choices, and those choices have consequences. So if they freely CHOOSE to take a job that only requires them to work 4 8-hour days a week or has better 'perks', or they CHOOSE to work closer to home rather than commute to where 'the money is', or they CHOOSE to have a family, the consequences are that they may not be paid as much as someone who makes a different choice. You may not like this fact, but that doesn't make it any less true.