Gender gap in tech salaries

A man is likely to make more money than a woman in a technology job. According to a salary survey by career site Dice.com, the average salary last year for male technology professionals was $76,582, and for women, it was $67,507. Dice collected data from more than 19,000 technology professionals who use its site; respondents either filled out an online survey or replied to a request for information sent via email. "We feel comfortable that what we're seeing here is in fact representative of what's happening in the marketplace," said Thomas Silver, senior vice president of marketing at Dice. The gap was also wide in the retail, mail-order and eCommerce industries where men made 15 percent more than women. The survey found the gap narrowest in manufacturing, where men made 6.4 percent more than women.

However, the survey found that the difference shrinks as people work their way up the organizational chain. Female project managers earned $100,436 last year. Men made a little more at $101,569. Overall, Dice said that the average IT salary increased last year by 1.7 percent to $74,570, with pay varying by region. The three highest-paying areas were Silicon Valley, at $93,876; Boston at $83,465; and the Baltimore/Washington area at $81,750. Meanwhile, Detroit ranked at the bottom of 16 metro areas, with an average tech salary of $67,271.

For more on salary disparities:
- See this ComputerWorld article