Is there a gender pay gap?

The gender pay gap has been in the news recently with the announcement of a lawsuit filed by the US Women's National Soccer team for gender discrimination by the US Soccer Federation.  Also, sometime in April is typically when we see various organizations promoting "Equal Pay Day", a symbolic date on which some claim that women finally catch up to what men earned during the previous year.  But is there really a gender-based pay gap? And should the US Women's National Soccer team earn as much as the men's team?  

 

References (hyperlinks may only work on www.redmombluemom.com):

• 2019 Paycheck Fairness Act (text of proposed bill)
• Colorado’s Equal Pay for Equal Work Act (text of proposed bill)
• Women Deserve Equal Pay (National Organization of Women)
• The pay gap myth - video (PragerU)
• Don't buy into the gender pay gap myth (Forbes)
• Harvard study of the reasons for a gender pay gap (Foundation for Economic Education)
• US Women's Soccer - details of lawsuit (NY Times)
• US soccer players: “We’re on the right side of this” (ABC 3/12/19)
• US Women's Soccer team sues for equal pay (Powerline Blog)
• The U.S. Women’s Soccer Team is Better than the Men’s.  That’ll Help Its Case. (Washington Post 3/12/19)
• BLS report suggests gender earnings differential can be explained (AEI)
• Department of Labor's Women's Bureau (US Department of Labor)
• Frequently Asked Questions about the Gender Pay Gap (AAUW)