Informative Preparation Outline

Informative Preparation Outline

Name:

Title: Economics of Being a Woman

Organizational Pattern: Topical

General Purpose: To inform

Specific Purpose: To inform my audience of three aspects of the economics of being a woman.

Central Idea: Three aspects of the economics of being a woman include: women’s wages, how women spend more on essential products, and the societal costs of being female.

Introduction:

Attention: Several years ago, when my brother and I were at Target, my mom handed each of us a $20 bill and said we could choose whatever we wanted. My brother came back with deodorant, a pack of gum, a bag of Doritos, and a pack of 3 shirts. I returned with a single shirt. At first glance, it may appear that my brother was better at spotting good deals than me. In reality, women have to spend more than men: this is the economics of being a woman.

Credibility: This is a topic I really care about and I’ve spent a lot of time researching. It greatly impacts the population, including me and many people in this class.

Preview: Today we’ll discuss the economics of being a women by first talking about women’s wages, second, how women spend more on essential products, and third, the societal costs of being female.

Body:

1. First we need to look at how much women earn in comparison men to show the initial money they have to spend.
   1. Let’s start by looking at the historical wage gap between men and women.

1. In her 2016 article The Equal Pay Act, financial expert Beth Rowen found that, before the 1960s, jobs were often categorized according to sex, meaning higher level jobs were listed almost exclusively under “Help Wanted–Male.” In some instances advertisements showed identical jobs under male and female listings, but with separate pay scales. Between 1950 and 1960, women will full time jobs earned on average between 59-64 cents for every dollar their male counterparts earned doing the same job.
2. A 1998 report by the Council of Economic Advisers discovered that after hovering at about 60 percent since the mid-1950s, the ratio of women’s to men’s median pay began to rise in the late 1970s and steadily increased through the 90s, which leads us to today.

1. 1. The American Association of University Women 2015 finds that women still make 80% of the salary men make.

1. In other words, women earn 80 cents for every dollar a man makes. This means the current wage gap is 20%.
2. This occurs even when men and women have the same level of education. If the growth to reach pay equity continues at the rate it has since 2001, women will not reach pay equity with men until 2152, over 100 years from now.

Transition: Now that we’ve seen how much women make, let’s look at what they spend their money on.

1. Now let’s examine how women spend their money on essentials.

1. First, we can see money spent on feminine hygiene products.

1. BBC News reports in 2016 that 37 of the 50 states have what’s called a “tampon tax.” According to my audience analysis given on October 4th, 2017, majority of the class doesn’t know what the tampon tax is. It’s exactly what it sounds like, a tax on tampons and other feminine hygiene products.
2. The Washington Post in 2016 shows that California generates over $20 million with the tampon tax annually. This is just in California. This is a cost that only women have to pay.

1. However, other personal hygiene items cost more for women.
   1. The December 2015 study by the NYC Department of Consumer Affairs found that the largest price discrepancy between men’s and women’s products existed for shampoo and conditioner: women, on average, paid 48% more for a similar product.
   2. They further found women pay about 20% more for deodorant and on average, 8% more for their clothes than men do.
   3. Overall, another 2015 study from the NYC Department of Consumer Affairs found of 800 nearly identical products with male and female versions that the women’s products, on average, cost 7% more than the men’s products.

Transition: Now that we’ve gone over essentials women buy, let’s look at other purchases.

III. Finally, we need to look at societal costs to being a woman.

1. Specifically, look at the beauty industry.
   1. Many women feel the societal pressure to wear makeup and do their hair, or just do it because they want to.
   2.  The Huffington Post finds in 2013, nearly 60 percent of American women use at least one beauty product every day.
2. According to an article from In Style 2013, the average woman spends $15,000 on beauty products over the course of her lifetime. This is money we rarely see men spending.

Conclusion:

Sign Post and Summary: The simple fact is it costs more to be a woman. Today we discussed how women’s salaries are less than that of men’s, how women spend more on essential products, and the societal costs of being female.

Memorable Ending:: These costs have major impacts on half the population. So after both my brother and I enter the career force, it’s more likely that I’ll have just $16 dollars to spend at Target, while he still has $20. He’ll still be able to purchase a pack of shirts, some deodorant and maybe some shampoo. On the other hand, I’ll be lucky to get a single shirt.