Finding the 11 highest paid female CEOs in America in 2017 might seem an odd task, as many of us are programmed to think that women aren’t given a chance to reach the top of the corporate ladder in the U.S.
Over the last few years, we have seen a massive media onslaught against companies which pay their female employees less than their male employees. There is even a special day – Equal Pay Day (April 4) – celebrated by Feminists and women’s rights activists to spread awareness about the gender pay gap (although whether any pay gap in a larger sense is actually unjust or the legitimate result of men working harder jobs, is contested). As a result, major companies are taking active measures to curb any gender pay gap among their workforce.
In fact, when we take a look at the salaries of female CEOs in the U.S, the gender pay gap problem is taking a new turn. According to data compiled by The Wall Street Journal, female CEOs earn more than male CEOs. This finding is based on the median compensation packages of S&P 500 leaders who held their jobs for at least a year. The report revealed that 21 female CEOs received a median salary of $13.8 million, compared to the $11.6 million median salary earned by the 382 male CEOs.
It might also be surprising for you to know that over the last six years, female CEOs have made more money than male CEOs, and that three of the ten highest paid executives are women. However, women are far outnumbered by men in almost every job segment. Some experts also believe that companies have started to hire top female executives and pay them hefty sums to silence the media, while a majority of women doing non-executive jobs are still being paid far less than men (although this seems highly speculative).
Copyright: baranq / 123RF Stock Photo
Tech giants like Google and Facebook are notorious for their vast gender-based pay gaps. In May, Google refused to provide wage data to the Department of Labor, saying that it would have to spend up to 500 hours of work and $100,000 to comply with investigators’ demands. The Department of Labor had requested Google to provide wage data which would help it find out reasons behind the gender pay gap problems in tech corporations. According to a survey conducted by companies review platform Glassdoor, men make 28.3% more than their female counterparts on average in the U.S. The survey is based on 534,000 anonymously shared employee salaries.
But famous people in the industry are rallying to solve the problem of the gender pay gap. Sheryl Sandberg recently launched the #20percentCounts campaign under her organization, Lean In, to spread awareness and campaign for equal wages. In 2015, Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff spent $3 million to close Saleforce’s pay gap. In his commencement speech at Harvard in May, Mark Zuckerberg supported the idea of a universal basic income, which would also close the pay gap somewhat. As a result, trends are changing, and we can see this change in the hefty paychecks female CEOs are taking home.
Head to the next page to begin the list of the 11 highest paid female CEOs in America in 2017.
