For the accounting field, the future is female isn’t just a saying… It's a way of life. This is a field that just gets it. But don’t trust us — trust the facts!
As a society, we’ve made a lot of strides towards cultivating a more equitable world. One significant step forward that we’ve made is letting the world know that women are just as capable of working in any field or role as men. Accounting is a prime example of this; women are dominating the field. Statistics show that approximately 60 percent of accountants are women. But that doesn’t mean there aren't still opportunities for improvement. Because even if the world knows that both men and women can do the same job — that doesn’t mean they are paid the same to do it.
Yep, that’s right, it’s time to talk about the wage gap. Thankfully, accounting firms recognize the inequitable treatment and are making moves to close the wage gap — in more ways than one. If you’ve tuned into Good Trouble, then you know Mariana and her coworkers find themselves advocating for the wage gap disparity, which eventually becomes a company wide issue. But what exactly is it? The wage gap is usually associated with women not receiving the same hourly rate or salary as men with the same title, responsibilities, and performance. But there’s actually more to it. It also includes the certain realities that women have to think of at a higher rate than men — one being access to childcare services. This changes the circumstances that would allow women to dedicate the same amount of time and make the same amount of money as men. The accounting field took note of this and made changes to the culture that emphasizes the importance of flexible work models that encourage work/life balance, setting one’s own hours, and remote work. This way, women don’t have to stress as much about how to find childcare. Not flexibility directly leading to an inclusive work environment. 🤭
Female accountants are also directly impacting other women dealing with the wage gap, even those who don’t work in accounting. Advocacy groups utilize public financial data that accountants collect for their clients’ annual Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) reporting, in order to see how equal pay policies are operating in real time and determine new opportunities to improve. On the flip side, some corporate companies looking to enhance their compensation standards, hire accountants to do comprehensive audits of their pay structures to track metrics and see if there are gender pay disparities. Accountants are then tasked with figuring out what recommendations to make on how to alleviate those disparities while still staying within budget.
The act of attaining accounting knowledge can be a tool for empowerment across people of all identities. Whether you’re team #girlboss or team #lazygirljob, mastering your own financial well-being sounds like #goals.
Making an impact doesn’t always have to look a certain way. Sometimes one of the boldest statements we can make is just by being. When we show up in spaces that need our perspective, our voice — that need us — then we are doing one of the greatest acts of activism.
