Female Workers Still Earn Just 80 Cents for Every Dollar from Male Workers

In 2024, full-time, year-round female workers earned just 80.9¢ for every dollar male workers made, the biggest drop in the wage-gap ratio since 1966, according to data released by Premier Law Group.

“When data shows women still earning as little as 80.9¢ for every dollar a man makes, even for full-time, year-round work, that isn’t just bad math. It is a clear signal that many employers may be violating the Equal Pay Act of 1963 and related pay-equity laws by knowingly or negligently maintaining discriminatory pay practices,” says Premier Law Group. “In our experience litigating such cases, broad pay gaps of this magnitude can expose companies to liability for back pay, compensatory and liquidated damages, and attorneys’ fees, especially if those gaps trace to systemic failures in pay transparency, performance evaluation, or promotion policies.” 

Key takeaways:

• 80.9¢ what full-time, year-round women earned vs men in 2024.
• 83.2¢ weekly median pay for full-time women vs men (Q4 2024).
• 74¢ what women in professional and management roles earned for every dollar vs. men made (2024).
• 75.6¢ is what women earned compared with men when part-time and seasonal workers are included.
• Women earned 18% less per hour than men in 2024, even after adjusting for race, education, age, and location.
• Across almost every occupation, even in female-dominated jobs, women earned less than their male peers in 2023–2024.
• After decades of slow improvement, 2024 marks the biggest single-year drop in pay equity in recent history. That reversal signals a wider trend, not a one-off blip.
• With women earning on average 20–25% less than men for the same work or hours, many lose thousands of dollars each year, which adds up over a lifetime, affecting retirement, savings, and household stability.