I think the study compares people of different genders im the same role (lawyer vs lawyer, laborer vs laborer)
regardless, I still find the most surprising takeaway is that US women earn less as a % of men’s wages than PRC women. I would have assumed the opposite
No, your article explains it's because men and women choose different occupations, work in differnt industries, and generally have a different amount of experience (usually due to women leaving the workforce to have kids).
It says it right here:
"According to the Zhipin report, the major factors fueling the pay gap are differences in occupation, industry, and number of years of work experience between men and women."
And here:
"The salary difference between men and women... increases to 15 percent for employees with over five years of work experience. This disparity is attributed to women being likely to get married and have children within these first five years, requiring them to take maternity leave and be more "family-focussed.""
I don't understand this need people have to belive women are victims here.
If you want to earn good money, choose subjects like science, computing, engineering, accounting, business, etc.
If you want to earn poor money, choose subjects like education, child care, English, psychology, etc.