What is Controlled Gender Pay Gap? Definition & 2025 Statistics

The gender pay gap remains a major workforce equity concern in 2025. Despite decades of progress, women still earn less than their male counterparts across industries and roles. One key measure is the “controlled gender pay gap,” which compares pay between men and women performing the same job title or similar work with equivalent qualifications, experience, and hours worked.

According to the U.S. Department of Labor, women still earn about 83.6 cents  for every dollar earned by men, even after adjusting for job-related factors. Research from the Pew Research  Center shows that while the overall pay gap has slightly narrowed over the past two decades, women remain overrepresented in lower-paying jobs and underrepresented in higher-paying jobs, which continues to fuel the wider pay gaps we see today.

This guide explains what the controlled gender pay gap is, how it differs from the uncontrolled pay gap, the causes behind these disparities, and the latest 2025 statistics.

What is controlled gender pay gap?

The controlled gender pay gap, also known as the adjusted wage gap, measures the percentage  difference in median pay between men and women who hold the same or similar jobs with equivalent qualifications, experience, and hours worked. It accounts for compensable factors such as job title, education level, years of experience, and workload to isolate potential inequities in pay for equal work or work of equal value.

In essence, the adjusted wage gap evaluates pay equity within narrowly defined roles, rather than using broad averages that combine different types of work, industries, and seniority levels.

According to Statista data, after adjusting for relevant factors, women still earn about 99 cents for every dollar earned by men in comparable roles with similar credentials. This indicates that a persistent 1% controlled gap remains even under controlled settings.

Understanding this adjusted wage gap needs reliable, accurate salary data and consistent analysis. With Salary.com's Compensation Software, organizations can benchmark compensation, uncover disparities, and support fair, transparent pay practices.

What causes the gender pay gap?

The gender pay gap results from a combination of economic, social, and organizational factors that influence how work is valued and compensated. Key contributors include:

• Occupational segregation: Women are often overrepresented in lower-paying industries and roles, while men dominate higher-paying fields.

• Career interruptions: Married women and mothers face the motherhood penalty, taking time off or accepting a flexible work schedule that may affect pay and long-term retirement benefits.

• Work experience and education differences: Even with the same education and bachelor’s degree, disparities in experience, age group, and tenure can determine pay outcomes.

• Structural bias and discrimination: Persistent gender stereotypes and unconscious bias influence hiring, promotion, and how women performing similar jobs are paid compared with male colleagues.

• Negotiation patterns: Social and cultural norms can affect how women approach pay negotiations, often resulting in smaller increases over time.

Controlled pay gap vs. uncontrolled pay gap

The table below outlines the differences between the two key measures of the gender wage gap:

Aspect	Uncontrolled Pay Gap	Controlled Pay Gap
Definition	Overall median salary difference between all men and women across sectors, industries, and job types, regardless of qualifications.	Median pay difference between men and women with the same job title and same qualifications.
Variables adjusted	None.	Job title, education, experience, and hours worked.
2025 global data	Women earn 83¢ per $1 earned by men.	Women earn 99¢ per $1 earned by men.
Key insight	Reflects the overall economic power disparity and the racial pay gap.	Reveals inequities that may result from bias or unequal pay practices.

Understanding both measures is essential. The uncontrolled gap captures broad inequality across the labor force, while the controlled pay gap focuses narrowly on pay inequities among those with the same job title or same position.

Organizations aiming to close both these gaps can implement salary transparency initiatives and conduct regular pay equity audits. Tools like CompAnalyst Software provide data-driven insights to benchmark pay, identify disparities, and promote fair compensation practices.

Gender wage gap statistics in 2025

As of 2025, the gender wage gap in the United States remains a persistent indicator of economic inequality between men and women. The following statistics provide an updated view of how the gender wage gap continues to shape the American labor landscape.

• The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that women who worked full-time had median weekly earnings of $1,005 compared to the $1,202 median weekly earnings for men. This means women earned about 83.6% of what men earned nationally, reflecting a gender wage gap of roughly 16.4% across the U.S. labor market.

• Among younger women aged 25 to 34, the gender pay gap narrows to 95 cents, based on Pew Research Center data.

• After adjusting for job title, qualifications, and experience, the adjusted wag gap shrinks to about 1%, confirming progress but also ongoing bias.

• By state, for example, in New York, women earned around 87.3 cents per dollar earned by men, showing the gap persists but is smaller at the state level, based on the New York State Department of Labor Reports.

• The wage gap is more significant for women of color. Black women earn 65 cents, Latina women just 58 cents, Native American women 58 cents, and Asian American women 96 cents for every dollar earned by white, non-Hispanic men. When considering all workers (including part-time and seasonal), these numbers decline further, with Latina women earning only 54 cents and Native American women 53 cents per dollar earned by white men.

FAQs about the adjusted wage gap

Here are frequently asked questions about the adjusted wage gap:

Why do women still get paid less than men for the same job?

Women still get paid less than men for the same job due to several interconnected reasons. These include societal norms and expectations that historically placed women in caregiving roles, occupational segregation keeping women in lower-paying fields, differences in negotiation habits, and implicit or explicit biases in the workplace. Additionally, legacy pay disparities, workplace culture, and unequal measures of performance or seniority contribute to ongoing pay inequities—even after accounting for skills and experience.

What are the two types of gender pay gap?

The two types of gender pay gap are:

1. Uncontrolled gender pay gap: Women earn 83 cents for every dollar earned by men overall across the labor market without accounting for job role, education, experience, or hours worked.

2. Controlled gender pay gap: When accounting for equal job roles, education, experience, and hours worked, women earn 99 cents for every dollar earned by men.

These distinctions help identify where disparities arise from occupational choices versus workplace treatment and economic valuation.

Is the gender pay gap illegal?

According to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the gender pay gap is considered illegal in the U.S. under laws such as the Equal Pay Act and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. However, despite these legal protections, the EEOC recognizes that the gender pay gap continues to exist because of enforcement challenges, legal loopholes, and the difficulty of identifying and proving pay inequities.

To address these issues, the EEOC advocates for greater pay transparency, stricter reporting requirements, and more focused enforcement measures to help reduce gender-based wage disparities.