All signs point to the fact that COVID-19 has had a worse impact on women in the United States compared to men. With many schools operating through remote learning since early 2020, women, who are often the primary caretaker, have predominantly been the ones forced to attempt to balance their jobs and caring for their children full time. As a result, many had to leave the workforce.
Further, women, particularly Black and Hispanic women, were much more likely to lose their jobs amid the pandemic and remain unemployed even as the labor market has begun to recover. This in part because women disproportionately hold jobs in some of the hardest hit sectors, including leisure and hospitality and food service.
It will not be until after the U.S. businesses return to normal operation that the pandemic’s effect on women in the workforce and the gender pay gap can be fully understood. The most recent available data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that in 2020, women in full-time positions were paid just over 82 cents on the dollar compared to men working full time.
One of the reasons often cited for the gender wage gap is known as the glass ceiling, the invisible barrier in the workplace that prevents women from having access to the very high-end positions. Despite claims to the contrary, the glass ceiling in the United States continues to be a reality for millions of women in the workplace. Less than one third of chief executive officers, for example, are women, and the typical female in the occupation earns 25% less than male chief executives. Just 6% of S&P 500 companies are run by women.
The result is that while some women are employed in the highest-paid occupations in the country, they have much lower representation and are also paid less for the same work. 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the 25 occupations with the highest average full-time salaries for women in the United States. In all cases where sufficient data was available, women earned lower median annual salaries than men, and in 18 of the 25 occupations men accounted for a larger share of total employment than women. Most of these jobs are among the highest paying in the country, regardless of gender. These are the 25 highest paying jobs in America.
Click here to see the 25 highest paying jobs for women.
Click here to see our methodology.
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25. Sales managers
> Women’s median annual earnings: $73,372
> Men’s median annual earnings: $98,592
> Women’s earnings as pct. of men’s: 74.4%
> Number of female workers: 163,000 (32.9% of workforce)
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24. Computer systems analysts
> Women’s median annual earnings: $73,476
> Men’s median annual earnings: $84,292
> Women’s earnings as pct. of men’s: 87.2%
> Number of female workers: 175,000 (33.1% of workforce)
Source: mixetto / E+ via Getty Images
23. Marketing managers
> Women’s median annual earnings: $74,620
> Men’s median annual earnings: $90,064
> Women’s earnings as pct. of men’s: 82.9%
> Number of female workers: 284,000 (58.8% of workforce)
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22. Purchasing managers
> Women’s median annual earnings: $74,932
> Men’s median annual earnings: $85,072
> Women’s earnings as pct. of men’s: 88.1%
> Number of female workers: 98,000 (44.3% of workforce)
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21. Physical therapists
> Women’s median annual earnings: $75,452
> Men’s median annual earnings: $82,732
> Women’s earnings as pct. of men’s: 91.2%
> Number of female workers: 135,000 (64.6% of workforce)
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20. Public relations specialists
> Women’s median annual earnings: $75,504
> Men’s median annual earnings: N/A
> Women’s earnings as pct. of men’s: N/A
> Number of female workers: 80,000 (62.5% of workforce)
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19. Management analysts
> Women’s median annual earnings: $75,660
> Men’s median annual earnings: $96,512
> Women’s earnings as pct. of men’s: 78.4%
> Number of female workers: 273,000 (41.5% of workforce)
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18. Operations research analysts
> Women’s median annual earnings: $75,920
> Men’s median annual earnings: $92,872
> Women’s earnings as pct. of men’s: 81.7%
> Number of female workers: 73,000 (47.4% of workforce)
Source: serts / E+ via Getty Images
17. Engineers
> Women’s median annual earnings: $76,076
> Men’s median annual earnings: $91,468
> Women’s earnings as pct. of men’s: 83.2%
> Number of female workers: 83,000 (15.3% of workforce)
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16. Medical and health services managers
> Women’s median annual earnings: $76,128
> Men’s median annual earnings: $95,628
> Women’s earnings as pct. of men’s: 79.6%
> Number of female workers: 438,000 (69.6% of workforce)
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15. Project management specialists
> Women’s median annual earnings: $76,336
> Men’s median annual earnings: $88,036
> Women’s earnings as pct. of men’s: 86.7%
> Number of female workers: 295,000 (45.8% of workforce)
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14. Fundraisers
> Women’s median annual earnings: $77,272
> Men’s median annual earnings: N/A
> Women’s earnings as pct. of men’s: N/A
> Number of female workers: 65,000 (71.4% of workforce)
Source: Chainarong Prasertthai / iStock via Getty Images
13. Financial and investment analysts
> Women’s median annual earnings: $77,376
> Men’s median annual earnings: $90,584
> Women’s earnings as pct. of men’s: 85.4%
> Number of female workers: 128,000 (41.3% of workforce)
Source: scyther5 / Getty Images
12. Computer programmers
> Women’s median annual earnings: $79,508
> Men’s median annual earnings: $86,996
> Women’s earnings as pct. of men’s: 91.4%
> Number of female workers: 82,000 (21.1% of workforce)
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11. Producers and directors
> Women’s median annual earnings: $80,496
> Men’s median annual earnings: $75,816
> Women’s earnings as pct. of men’s: 106.2%
> Number of female workers: 60,000 (48.8% of workforce)
Source: GrapeImages / E+ via Getty Images
10. Civil engineers
> Women’s median annual earnings: $82,576
> Men’s median annual earnings: $84,708
> Women’s earnings as pct. of men’s: 97.5%
> Number of female workers: 54,000 (14.6% of workforce)
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9. Human resources managers
> Women’s median annual earnings: $83,148
> Men’s median annual earnings: $90,896
> Women’s earnings as pct. of men’s: 91.5%
> Number of female workers: 194,000 (73.5% of workforce)
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8. Lawyers
> Women’s median annual earnings: $86,580
> Men’s median annual earnings: $120,848
> Women’s earnings as pct. of men’s: 71.6%
> Number of female workers: 351,000 (42.8% of workforce)
Source: AleksandarNakic / Getty Images
7. Software developers
> Women’s median annual earnings: $89,856
> Men’s median annual earnings: $104,208
> Women’s earnings as pct. of men’s: 86.2%
> Number of female workers: 322,000 (18.5% of workforce)
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Source: LL28 / Getty Images
6. Nurse practitioners
> Women’s median annual earnings: $97,084
> Men’s median annual earnings: N/A
> Women’s earnings as pct. of men’s: N/A
> Number of female workers: 145,000 (84.8% of workforce)
Source: wmiami / Getty Images
5. Physician assistants
> Women’s median annual earnings: $98,488
> Men’s median annual earnings: N/A
> Women’s earnings as pct. of men’s: N/A
> Number of female workers: 67,000 (59.3% of workforce)
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4. Physicians
> Women’s median annual earnings: $99,060
> Men’s median annual earnings: $120,172
> Women’s earnings as pct. of men’s: 82.4%
> Number of female workers: 313,000 (41.6% of workforce)
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3. Computer and information systems managers
> Women’s median annual earnings: $99,320
> Men’s median annual earnings: $108,732
> Women’s earnings as pct. of men’s: 91.3%
> Number of female workers: 187,000 (26.6% of workforce)
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2. Chief executives
> Women’s median annual earnings: $106,652
> Men’s median annual earnings: $141,024
> Women’s earnings as pct. of men’s: 75.6%
> Number of female workers: 363,000 (31.4% of workforce)
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1. Pharmacists
> Women’s median annual earnings: $112,320
> Men’s median annual earnings: $118,872
> Women’s earnings as pct. of men’s: 94.5%
> Number of female workers: 134,000 (55.6% of workforce)
Methodology:
To determine the highest paying jobs for women, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the median wage for over 180 detailed occupations with data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Current Population Survey program. Occupations were ranked based on the median annual wage for full-time female workers in 2020. Median annual wage estimates were calculated by multiplying the median weekly wage by 52 weeks. Additional data on employment by gender and median wages for full-time male workers used to calculate gender pay gaps by occupation also came from the BLS. All data is for the most recent period available.
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