New Yale research reveals that the gender pay gap has remained largely unchanged for decades.

Since the mid-1990s, the progress in closing the gender pay gap has nearly stalled, and women are not benefiting from the incremental improvements, according to new research from Yale.

According to a study by Jaime Arellano-Bover, a professor of economics at the Yale School of Management, the findings suggest that.

According to a study by the National Women's Law Center, women are paid 84 cents for every dollar earned by men, which is only slightly better than the 2002 data when women were paid about 80% as much as men.

The authors examined over 40 years of pay data from the Census Bureau's current population survey to identify the factors contributing to the persistent pay gap and potential solutions for promoting equity in the future.

In the '70s, the wage gap was closing due to two factors: young men and women entering the workforce being paid similar wages, and older workers retiring from the labor force.

During the mid-'70s to mid-'90s, two forces contributed to closing the gender pay gap, and newer generations were increasingly gender-equal in their outcomes, according to Arellano-Bover.

The pay gap among young workers has stopped narrowing, while research indicates that the retirement of older workers with wider gaps is the only factor contributing to the decrease in the overall gender pay gap.

According to Arellano-Bover, the study's findings suggest that the narrowing gender pay gap may actually indicate poorer wage and career opportunities for men, rather than better opportunities for women.

Researchers found that young men's wage distribution has decreased over the years, while young women's wage distribution has remained relatively stable. However, the improvement in young women's wage distribution between the mid-'70s and mid-'90s was small compared to the significant drop in young men's wage distribution during the same period.

Pay equity starts with educational opportunities

The wage gap for young workers persists despite the long-term consequences of early-career gaps, according to Arellano-Bover. Therefore, the authors propose that policies aimed at closing the wage gap should prioritize early-career interventions for young women entering the workforce.

Tackling disparities among young people when they enter the labor market is crucial for achieving gender equality in the labor market, according to Arellano-Bover.

Policies that prioritize equity could be introduced in grade school to help students identify their college and career goals.

While Gen Z boys and girls have similar levels of access to STEM education in school, girls are more likely to express disinterest or lack of confidence in their ability to excel in these subjects.

According to Zach Hrynowski, a senior education researcher with Gallup, girls may feel hesitant to try something new due to concerns about how they will be perceived, while young men may have an "irrational confidence" in their ability to succeed at tasks they have never done before.

Girls are more likely to believe that STEM careers are not inclusive of individuals like them.

If young women do not pursue high-paying fields like STEM, it can have long-lasting effects on their income.

Despite the fact that more women than men are earning college degrees, "young women are less likely to choose majors that lead to high-paying jobs than men," says Arellano-Bover. This trend has remained relatively stable over the past 20 to 30 years, as the wage gap has persisted.

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