Poll: 8 of 10 Women Feel Discriminated Against at Work

A lot of things have changed in the past 15 years. But not how people feel about gender equality in the workplace, a new poll says.

84 percent of surveyed women said men get paid better for similar jobs. (Two-thirds of men agreed.) 46 percent of women said they’ve personally faced gender discrimination.

The poll surveyed 1,000 people earlier this month. It was conducted for NBC News and The Wall Street Journal, which said those findings are “little changed from a 1997 survey.” But there is some new optimism from a generation that may not have been working back then.

The poll found women under 35 are more likely to believe they can balance work and home life without major sacrifices: 38 percent of them felt that way, while less than a third of older women did. In 1997, 78 percent of women thought balancing work and life was impossible. Now 66 percent feel that way.

The number of men who felt the U.S. would be better off with more female politicians increased, from 59 percent in 1997 to 62 percent today. Fewer women felt that way. In 1997, 77 percent of women thought we’d be better off with more women in politics, while today only 69 percent do.

Government data show women working full-time earn about 79 percent of what men do. The Institute for Women’s Policy Research says that average earnings for women are lower than men’s in nearly every occupation.

We’ve discussed this topic a lot, and Money Talks News founder Stacy Johnson wrote about the gender pay gap just this week. But we want to hear from you: sound off on our Facebook page.