Women continue to see red over ‘ Pink tax’ bias

List of ordinary things sold for higher price than to men goes on and on

The “Pink tax” has many women seeing red when it comes to gender inequity.

Whether it’s razors, dry cleaning or toys, women pay more for those gender- specific items than men, studies show. As Women’s History Month draws to a close, gender- based pricing remains a stubborn issue that is yet to be solved, along with equal pay for equal work.

“Price discrimination adds another layer to the wage inequality women face, making it harder sometimes for women to make ends meet,” said Surina Khan, CEO of the Women’s Foundation of California, a group devoted to advancement of gender equality. The Bureau of Labor Statistics said that between 2004 and 2014, women earned 80% to 83% as much as men.

The Pink tax, so named because of the color of products directly marketed to girls and women, refers to the price difference for female- specific products compared with the gender- neutral goods or those marketed to men. And even though the issue has been around for decades, it is still profound.

In late 2015, the New York City Department of Consumer Affairs published a study comparing nearly 800 products from more than 90 brands, looking for price differences in items marketed to different genders. On average, products for women or girls cost 7% more than comparable products for men and boys. For example:

APPAREL

Girls’ clothing cost 4% more than boys’ clothing, and women’s clothing cost 8% more than men’s. A side- by- side comparison of red, short- sleeve polo shirts used as uniforms showed a $ 2 difference despite no obvious difference in style or quality. Both came from the same retailer.

TOYS Girls’ toys and accessories cost an average 7% more than boys’ toys. Separately, a side- by- side comparison of two Radio Flyer My 1st Scooters showed this: A red scooter cost $ 24.99 and a pink scooter cost $ 49, despite them being identical in all other ways.

PERSONAL CARE Women’s personal care products cost 13% more than men’s, according to the study.

Normally, consumers look to supply and demand to remedy inequities. If prices get too high on a product, someone finds out how to provide it cheaper. But “not all markets are perfect,” said Michael Cone, a customs attorney who filed a lawsuit in the U. S. Court of International Trade in 2007 that raised the broader question of whether different tariff rates for men’s and women’s apparel violate constitutional equal protection provisions. The case was dismissed, but discussion around the issue goes on.

Service providers say women’s dry cleaning and haircuts tend to be more labor- and time- intensive, which is why women are willing to pay higher prices. Dry cleaners who use pressing machines, traditionally built for men’s shirts, need to hand press women’s shirts, a more labor- intensive, and costly, process. Women’s often smaller and tapered clothes are typically not suited for these machines. Unisex machines exist at half the price of man- sized machines but press fewer items of clothing per hour.

“Retailers see women as their biggest target,” said Ted Potrikus, CEO of the Retail Council of New York State, a statewide retail trade association. “Research and development, following trends, meeting trends, advertising products on television and in magazines are not cheap. Companies are willing to spend more advertising to women than they are toward men, contributing to the price discrepancies.”

“Price discrimination adds another layer to the wage inequality women face, making it harder sometimes for women to make ends meet.” Surina Khan, CEO of the Women’s Foundation of California

NICK UT, AP Dry cleaning is just one example of places where women are paying more than men.