Female adult film stars above men on average earnings

It’s a consistent problem in our nation that women typically make less money than men in the work force. It’s been occurring for years, and there has been no recent sign that this will cease anytime soon.

According to aauw.org, women in 2012 were reported to make 77 percent of what men made for doing the same job.

While this percentage is reflective of women over 35, there is still a significant difference throughout all age groups.

Some people argue that this lack of balance exists because women cannot perform some of the same jobs as men — such as contracting or mechanical jobs. However, feminists and other people advocating equality argue that a woman can perform the same jobs that men can and thus are deserving of equal pay.

People question the logistics behind the calculation of equal pay. Some wonder if part-time and full-time work is taken into account; others wonder if the inequality is due to the high number of women whose primary jobs are being a home caregiver.

However, for every seemingly expected everyday occurrence, there is always an exception. There are certain jobs in which women generally are making higher salaries than men.

In the world of unflattering florescent lights, awkward camera angles and unrealistic situations, women who star in adult films are on top — financially, that is.

Askmen.com reported that in the adult film industry, women have the possibility of being paid much more than men. According to the article titled “5 Things You Didn’t Know: Adult Films,” female porn stars make about $100,000 to $250,000 per year, while male porn stars typically make only $40,000 per year.

However strange this statistic may seem, it does need to be recognized that this statistic is situational. These averages vary. Newcomers to the industry will make nowhere near the high salary displayed.

While the difference in salary may seem confusing for some, it makes complete sense to others. The women are the sellers of most genres of adult films.

In a buyer/seller sense, women sell the “product.” Women make the product look fun, pretty and exciting. They oversell the product and make it seem like the product is the best that ever lived.

Regardless, the possible salaries between the sexes in this industry is interesting.

Rarely do women get the upper hand in the war of the wages. Though some people may believe this to be an odd type of win for the female race, not many people are heard complaining about this lack of balance.

Of course, like any inequality, there will be people who oppose the imbalance; nevertheless, I have yet to see a horde of angry male porn stars opposing their low wages.

One possibility for this lack of outrage may be because people are aware of the demand for female porn stars. Also, the demographic of adult film viewers is generally higher among men.

For example, Family Safe Media reported that of the visitors to pornography sites, 72 percent are male and 28 percent are female.

When it comes down to it, if I wanted to throw it in the faces of misogynists who think pay inequality is acceptable, I may say that it is acceptable for women to receive more money than male porn actors because men are not able to perform the same “laborious jobs” as female porn stars.

Aside from porn, there are a few other professions for which women may be paid higher wages.

According to a 2011 article by Forbes, there are some jobs that pay women more. To name a few, bakers, managers and supervisors of construction workers, interviewers, preschool and kindergarten teachers, dieticians and nutritionists, painters (construction and maintenance) and aircraft, vehicle, and mobile equipment mechanics earn more if they are women.

However, it only further shows that society is gender-biased when it comes to job opportunities when we see the kind of jobs women make higher wages in.

While a few of the list’s jobs in which females prevail financially are primarily composed of men — take that, mechanics — most of the jobs are primarily composed of women. Some of the jobs on the list include beauticians and desk clerks.

Not to mention that in these jobs for which women are paid higher, men are not very far behind on earnings.

There is a reason people are heard advocating for women’s rights. Americans recognize that the battle for equality among genders and races is far from over.

Until the balance is found, I guess women can always stick to having sex for money to get the upper hand.

Senior staff columnist Kelly Schafler is a print journalism junior and may be reached at [email protected]