By: Ala Salameh, Andrew Scroggins, and Christopher DeGroff

Seyfarth Synopsis: On January 2, 2025, the EEOC released a report underscoring that a gender pay gap among federal employees has an age component as well; the gap is larger for those age 40 and over relative to those under age 40. In light of these findings, the EEOC recommends that federal employers identify and address gender-based barriers to equal pay and implement initiatives to eliminate pay inequities. While the report specifically examines federal entities, employers across all industries and sectors should take note amid the surge in state pay equity and transparency requirements. Critically, the EEOC’s focus on federal employer pay gaps may signal related enforcement efforts for private employers.

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) is charged with enforcing laws prohibiting discrimination in employment, including gender-based discrimination and discrimination against those age 40 and over. Recently, the EEOC leveraged data on over two million federal employees to look more closely at gender pay gaps, including in particular (1) the respective gender pay gaps across different age groups; and (2) how other factors such as race, education, age, occupation, and federal agency related to those pay disparities.

The EEOC’s analysis is based on data from fiscal year 2021. During that period, older workers were employed by the federal government at over twice the rate of younger workers (30.9% of the federal workforce was under age 40; and 69.1% was over age 40).[1] The populations of women and men in the dataset were similar in ways that aided the analysis. For example, the ratio of women to men was nearly identical in both the younger and older cohorts. In the younger cohort, the average age of women and men was identical; in the older cohort, the average age of women and men differed by only a few months. There are a number of key takeaways from the EEOC’s report:

1. The gender pay gap exists among all age groups but was meaningfully larger among employees over age 40. When looking at median wages across genders and ages, women under 40 were paid an average of $2,608 less than men annually. The gap was more than two-and-a-half times greater for women over 40, who were paid an average of $6,927 less than men annually.
2. Skills and backgrounds do not explain the difference. In its study, the EEOC controlled for “human capital” factors and “personal characteristics” such as education, years of federal work experience, race, disability status, age, and veteran status. Controlling for these factors did not explain the pay gap. To the contrary, considering these additional factors revealed an even larger gender pay gap than suggested by median pay figures. Said another way, women who possessed the same attributes that for men “generally would result in more pay” still were paid less. Controlling for these factors, the researchers concluded that women over 40 were paid $8,228 less than male workers in the same age group.
3. The factor most associated with narrowing the gap for workers under 40 was educational attainment. The study showed that educational attainment was correlated with higher pay. In both age groups, women were more likely to have a master’s, professional, or doctoral degree than their male counterparts. The difference was even more pronounced among women under 40, who presented higher educational attainment relative to their senior counterparts. For this younger group, educational attainment accounted for a decreased the gender pay gap of $1,665 annually. 
4. The factor most associated with narrowing the gap for workers 40 and over was veteran status. Women over age 40 who identified as veterans  were able to close the gender pay gap to a degree, reducing the shortfall by $1,314 annually. Veteran status is not a panacea, however, as “[o]n the whole, veterans were paid slightly less than non-veterans, and women were less likely to be veterans than men.”

Implications for Employers

Overall, the EEOC’s report reflects that the gender pay gap remains among men and women working for the federal. Though the gap has narrowed for women workers under 40, it still amounts to thousands of dollars less income each year and it cannot be explained by controlling for factors such as education and experience.

To address this ongoing disparity, the Commission recommends that federal agencies identify and address barriers, especially for women over age 40, to ensure they have equal access to higher paying occupations and roles. The EEOC’s “heal thyself” message to the federal government could also serve as an early warning to private employers that broader enforcement efforts may be on the way.  This sort of “intersectional discrimination,” meaning the overlap between two protected classes, has historically been a hot topic for the agency.  Employers should be mindful of this issue. 

And of course, employers also need to bear in mind that federal agencies do not, alone, carry the responsibility of ensuring equal pay. States and localities continue implementing pay transparency, reporting, and equity laws as described in Seyfarth’s 50 State Equal Pay Reference Guide; and in recent analyses on developments in Massachusetts, Illinois, New Jersey, and Minnesota.

If you have questions about pay equity laws and obligations in your area, please connect with the authors of this article and/or your Seyfarth attorney.

[1] The Impact of Age on the Gender Pay Gap in the Federal Sector, The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (Jan 2, 2025), https://www.eeoc.gov/sites/default/files/2025-01/Gender_Pay_Gap_By_Age_Report_final_508.pdf.