A new study from the Human Rights Campaign found that LGBTQ+ women make markedly less than their male counterparts at just 79 cents on the dollar. 

What You Need To Know

  • A new study from the Human Rights Campaign Foundation found that LGBTQ+ women make just 79 cents compared to the average man's dollar 

  • LGBTQ+ women also have a larger pay gap than women overall in the country, who on average earn 83 cents for every dollar a man makes

  • The wage gap between certain LGBTQ+ women and men increases further when broken down by race and sexual orientation, researchers found 

  • Latina LGBTQ+ women reported earning $720 per week, or about 65 cents to a man’s dollar, while Black LGBTQ+ women reported making 77 cents on the dollar

The Human Rights Campaign Foundation, the educational branch of one of the nation’s largest LGBTQ+ advocacy organizations, polled over 2,100 LGBTQ+ women working full-time across the United States and found they made an average of $875 per week compared to the median $1,108 weekly wage reported for men by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. 

LGBTQ+ women also have a larger pay gap than women overall in the country, who on average earn 83 cents for every dollar a man makes. 

According to the HRC, that means the average LGBTQ+ woman would have to work an additional 55 days to make the same amount as a man in one year. 

The wage gap between certain LGBTQ+ women and men increases further when broken down by race and sexual orientation, researchers found. 

Bisexual women and women of color – and in particular, women at the “intersection of these identities,” i.e. a Black, bisexual woman – have the largest wage gap compared to men. As a whole, bisexual women of all races made 68 cents on the dollar.  

Latina LGBTQ+ women reported earning $720 per week, or about 65 cents to a man’s dollar, while Black LGBTQ+ women reported making 77 cents on the dollar. 

“Taken together, it seems that, bisexual+ identity, alongside race/ethnicity, is largely driving the wage gap – and further adds weight to findings that there is something unique about the stigma, discrimination, and biphobia associated with bisexuality which confers economic risk,” the study read in part.

There was, however, one cohort that made more than working men: Lesbian or gay Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander women reported making $1200 per week, roughly $1.08 to a man’s dollar. 

But AANHPI women who identified as bisexual reported “substantially lower” wages than AANHPI women who identified as lesbian or gay, making an average of $667 per week, or 60 cents to the dollar earned by a man. 

The study authors note that the research is not without its limitations, least of which being that it polled only full-time workers. A number of studies have shown that women, and particularly LGBTQ+ women, are more likely to voluntarily work part-time, meaning the HRC report likely missed a large subsection of the population in its sample size. 

The study was also not able to adequately differentiate between transgender and cisgender LGBTQ+ women due to the amount of individuals included in the survey.

The new HRC data comes as the number of U.S. adults openly identifying as members of the LGBTQ+ community has doubled over the past decade, a trend noted by the advocacy organization, which called on lawmakers to work to close the pay gap for all sexual orientations and genders. 

“As the number of openly LGBTQ+ people in our country grows, the fight for equal pay has not yet been won,” Shoshana Goldberg, director of public education & research at the Human Rights Campaign Foundation, wrote in a statement. “This data is a powerful tool to call attention to wage disparities and take action to pay LGBTQ+ women what they are owed. Earning less is a dangerous setback that impacts every facet of our lives and must be addressed to promote true equity in not only our finances but in society at large.”