White House press secretary Josh Earnest acknowledged Wednesday that “we still have more work to do” at the White House to pay men and women equally, in spite of President Obama’s exhortations to private industry on the subject.
New data shows that the average male White House employee is paid about $88,600, while the average female employee earns about $78,400 — about 13 percent lower.
“The statistics that cited about the country is about 77 cents on the dollar and here at the White House it’s 88 cents on the dollar,” Mr. Earnest said. “So the White House is doing appreciatively better than the country as more broadly. But we still have work to do at the White House.”
Mr. Obama frequently calls on employers and on Congress to do more to ensure gender pay equity.
Mr. Earnest said men and women with the same job title at the White House make the same amount; for example, presidential senior advisers Valerie Jarrett and Dan Pfeiffer both earn the maximum salary of $172,200. He said the White House is “enjoying some success in making sure there are women who get equal pay for equal work,” with some women getting promotions within the past year.
• Dave Boyer can be reached at dboyer@washingtontimes.com.
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