THE ECONOMIC CASE AGAINST COMPARABLE WORTH

ROBERT J. THORNTON

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DOI: 10.2190/RU0B-ULP8-8XCQ-6Y42

Abstract

While equal pay laws mandate that men and women shall receive equal pay for jobs which are the same, the comparable worth doctrine would require equal pay for dissimilar jobs which can be somehow shown to be of comparable value to the employer. The doctrine has already been incorporated into the public employee compensation policies of several states (e.g., Minnesota) and is currently under consideration in many others. In this article, the author analyzes the various arguments offered in favor of comparable worth pay policies and finds them unconvincing. He then argues that the widespread implementation of such policies are likely to bring about economic problems with respect to implementation, resource allocation, and costs.

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