Gender Gap: Why Women Pay More

It's bad enough that women still earn less than men do whether it's in the same professions or in the same job. But according to North American data, women also pay more than men do, for an array of similar goods and services.

The research is also suggesting it's for the same reasons: women simply don't ask for more money when they negotiate salaries, and they don't complain when they find themselves paying more than men. But at least one group in the U.S. has decided enough is enough, and is demanding the differential pricing end.Though few retailers will admit it, gender-based pricing is standard industry practice. A lawyer researching U.S. import tariffs discovered that men's running shoes are taxed at 8.5 percent, whereas women's sneakers were taxed at 10%. The more he investigated, the more instances he found - though it varies. Sometimes it is men's items that are taxed at a higher rate (in the case of gloves) and other times it's women's. Ultimately, he concluded that women get the short end of the pricing stick.

California, which in 1996 became the first American state to ban gender pricing, found that women paid about $1,351 annually in extra costs and fees. But these laws are often hard to enforce and are rife with loopholes - like the one that allows dry cleaners to charge for garments requiring 'extra work'. New York City has recently moved to fine businesses for gender-based discriminatory pricing, which mainly targeted salons, barbershops, laundries and dry cleaners. Owners complain that certain services take longer, and should be charged accordingly. But the Department of Consumer Affairs Commissioner, Jonathan Mintz, told the Wall Street Journal that "there are completely legitimate reasons to charge different prices for different services and that one should be specific for what those reasons are. Reasons are not chromosomes."

But removing gender-based discrimination in pricing and tariffs can be a double-edged sword. In the European Union, for instance, it can mean women end up paying more, as in the case of new life insurance regulations.

We did our own comparisons, and found that women do pay more for everyday services and items than men do. Click on the photo below to see what these are, and tell us if you have run into these or any other situations involving unfair pricing practices.

SLIDESHOW: THE CONSUMER GENDER GAP