Google is the search engine everyone knows and loves. When someone needs something, anything at all, a song lyric or an obscure fact, Google is the go-to. The search engine is not just a favorite for consumers, however. For years, Google has topped the Forbes list of “Best Companies to Work For” in America.
According to Forbes, “The $75 billion tech titan is famous for luxe perks like free gourmet food, haircuts, and laundry services, of course.” Google truly seems like the dream job for many people. Is it possible that Google is the best company for an employee? Sure, if that employee is a man.
Although Google prides itself on being an extremely desirable employer and caters to the many needs of most employees, that may actually not be the case. For women working under the company, enjoying the perks of getting laundry done during work hours is not enough. These women deserve an equal wage, which Google is not providing.
According to The New York Times, “Female employees are paid less than male staff members at most job levels within Google, and the pay disparity extends as women climb the corporate ladder, according to data compiled by employees that provide a snapshot of salary information at the internet giant.”
The spreadsheet suggests that women at Google are paid less in most job levels than men are. For example, in entry-level jobs, the beginning pay for men is just over $55,000, whereas women earn just about $40,000. By level six, men tend to make $4,400 more on average.
The New York Times states, “At level three, the entry level for technical positions, women make 4 percent less than men at $124,000 in salary and bonus. But it widens to 6 percent by the time employees reach mid career status, around level five, with women earning, on average, $11,000 less than men.”
The only level where women make more money than men is at level two. Is a woman supposed to stay at level two all her life, just to feel as though she is not being cheated based on her gender? That would not be difficult, considering former and current women employees of Google have complained that they are not promoted as frequently as their male counterparts are.
Women employees at the company are not the only people concerned with the inequality. “What Google pays men versus women is at the heart of a dispute with the Department of Labor … In April, a Labor Department official said in a hearing … ‘we found systemic compensation disparities against women pretty much across the entire work force.’”
Fortunately, Google’s disparity is not as large as the rest of the nation’s gender gap. According to the Institute for Women’s Policy and Research, as of 2015, the gender gap is 20 percent in America. For every dollar that a man earns, a woman only makes 80 cents.
According to The New York Times, “Based upon its own analysis from January, Google said female employees make 99.7 cents for every dollar a man makes, accounting for factors like location, tenure, job role, level and performance.”
That is still not enough, and it will never be enough until women earn 100 cents for every man’s dollar. Until then, Google may simply consider itself the best place for men to work.
Featured Image by Open Grid Scheduler / Grid Engine on Flickr
Sign Up For Our Newsletter
