Report Says Women Near Parity In Many Business Fields

Women have virtually shattered the glass earnings ceilings in several traditionally high-paying, male-dominated fields. That's the surprising new research results released recently by the Pacific Research Institute For Public Policy, San Francisco. Using data culled from a variety of government sources, the institute found that in computer and information services, young women earn 94% as much as their young male counterparts; in engineering, 99%; in chemistry, 97%; and in architecture and environmental design, 95%. "The historical record refutes the notion that women need special preferences and government programs to succeed," says Naomi Lopez, author of the study and director of the Institute's Center for Enterprise and Opportunity. "Given equal opportunity, they do as well - - and in some areas better -- than their male counterparts." Among her other findings: Women-owned businesses account for one-third of all firms in the U.S. One in five married women earn more than their husband. Women represent 46% of the workforce, but nearly 50% of all management.