g. differences in intelligence, practicability etc.
Minority, immigrant and indigenous women in many societies have limited employment opportunities and are often at the bottom of the labor market. Many of these women hold jobs in free trade zones, the informal economy or unregulated sectors. Maurice Glegle-Ahanhanzo, the special investigator or reporter on the subject of contemporary forms of racism of the UN Commission on Human Rights, , studied the situation of minority women in the labor market when he visited Brazil in 1995. He concluded that "black women receive the lowest salaries (four times lower than those of a white man), are employed in the most unhealthy locations, work a triple working day and face threefold discrimination." (WCAR).
Once the factors affecting wage rates have been take into consideration we are still left with a gap, albeit smaller than initially thought, between male and female wages. This suggests that this anomalous gap is formed by discriminatory behavior in the labor market. Over time wage differentials change - the labor market grows/contracts and the labor force changes in structure e.g. proportion of under-25 year olds in the workplace. As the labor market is a dynamic system it is difficult to account for differences in wages.
Today, the majority of associate's, bachelor's, and master's degrees are awarded to women, as well as 40 percent of doctorates. Women not only are represented in greater numbers at the college and postgraduate levels but have also been steadily entering traditionally male-dominated programs.(iwf).
Despite recent controversy over gender discrimination the extent of this discrimination is often less than is perceived, as analysis of raw data on wage differentials does not take into account differences in human capital and job experience. In the past females will have taken time out of their career to raise children, and hence lose touch with their career, which makes them less employable.