If someone ever wants to deny the existence of a gender wage gap, show them this outrageous example. Until recently, the clerks for the Virginia state General Assembly were not getting equal compensation—and not for the reasons that would be considered reasonable (i.e. skills, experience, etc.). Turns out the House clerk (a man with five years of experience there) was making more than his Senate counterpart (a woman with 27 years of experience).
It may be hard to believe, but it’s true — and we have the receipts. HuffPo reports:
Susan Clarke Schaar has been the clerk of the Virginia state Senate for 27 years. G. Paul Nardo has been the clerk of the Virginia state House for five and a half years.
Schaar was making $175,392. The less-experienced Nardo was making $194,341.
It’s hard to find a more blatant display of gender pay disparity than what has been going on in the Virginia General Assembly.
Republican leaders in the state Senate recently authorized a raise for Schaar, according to the Richmond Times-Dispatch, so that she now makes $195,500 ― essentially the same as her male House counterpart who has been on the job for 21 years fewer than she has.
Senate Majority Leader Thomas K. Norment, Jr. (R) has been trying to fix the imbalance for months, saying, “I just think that she’s entitled to be compensated at the same level as the clerk of the House. She’s been here 30 years.”
The pay raise was not given without a fight from General Assembly members; unsurprisingly, some Republicans could not stand idly by while a woman is paid fairly for her labor. Fortunately, the budget adjustment for Schaar’s fair salary was approved and justice prevailed.