By: Justin Gray | November 1, 2017 | Boston 25 News
The Gender Gap: we hear about the problem with private companies all the time – women paid less than men – but new this half-hour, Boston 25 News reporter Justin Gray found the same problem in the federal government.
At congressional offices on Capitol Hill, republican or democrat, agency across government from NASA to the Department of Justice, new data shows men overwhelmingly hold the top jobs.
"We found at the federal level, it was 2 to 1, men versus women, in those spots," Adam Andrzejewski said.
Researchers at opened the books looked at the 500 highest paid positions in 25 federal agencies, and out of the 12,500 employees, nearly 8,000 were men. Those top jobs include the senior leadership positions.
"Well, I think it goes to an entire culture in Washington, D.C. of power, and money, and prestige," Adam Andrzejewski said.
The Department of Veterans Affairs had the biggest gender gap. Only 49 of their 500 highest paid employees were women. And it was no different in Congress, where of the 1,000 highest paid employees, only 35 percent were women. Congress itself, of course, is still 80 percent male, and Congresswoman Jacky Speier says that affects decisions.
"It's the fact that the majority of those who serve here are men, the vast majority," Jackie Speier said.
But OpenTheBooks found the gender disparity is in female member offices too. The average salary for men in Nancy Pelosi's office was $30,000 higher than for women. Similar to numbers for other Congressional leaders, male or female.
Reporting in Washington, Justin Gray Boston 25 News.