数据表明，女性当母亲后工资会下降 | 双语精读解析
人们都说：“女性能顶半边天”！随着中国接受高等教育的女性比例不断提高，在职业能力和工资收入层面，大量数据显示，女性和男性相差无几，且工作表现更为稳定。
根据美国皮尤研究中心（Pew Research Center）的研究分析，在美国250个城市中，有22个城市的30岁以下女性的收入与同龄男性持平或更高。尽管性别薪酬差距在不同地区有所不同，但年轻员工之间的薪酬差距较小。造成这一情况的原因有哪些？又有哪些方法可以减少“母职惩罚”现象？一起到文中找答案吧。
学习要点
什么是“母职惩罚”？
“性别工资差距”“同等工资待遇”的英文表达
“税收抵免、税收减免、税收调整”的区别
带着问题去精读
*文章来源：BBC
*本文中原文及部分例句翻译均采用机翻+译介译后编辑团队完成，仅供参考。不当之处欢迎大家在评论区讨论。
*译者：签约笔译班学员 Edwin Xi
*审校：Jennifer；排版：Yuki
*机翻平台：DeepL
1
精读原文
Why young women earn more than men in some US cities
为什么美国一些城市的年轻女性收入高于男性
West Virginia is a US state commonly cited for its coal mines and country roads – not for its place in the pay-gap conversation. But according to a new Pew Research Center analysis of US Census data, the metropolitan area of Morgantown – the state’s third largest city, home to West Virginia University – is one of only a few places in the nation where women out-earn their male counterparts.
西弗吉尼亚州是美国的一个州，人们常常谈论它的煤矿和乡村道路，而它在薪资差距问题上的地位却鲜被提及。然而，根据皮尤研究中心对美国人口普查数据的最新分析，摩根敦——该州第三大城市，也是西弗吉尼亚大学的所在地——是全国仅有的几个女性收入超过同龄男性的地方之一。
📒精读解析：
大家可以看到，本段比较长，而且在同一段中多次使用“dash 破折号”，我们都知道该符号在英语中用途比较广泛，它所引出的内容是正文的一部分，了解其在本段中多达三处的不同用法，能够帮助我们更好地理解文章。
破折号在第一处的“–not for…”表示转折，在这里可翻译为“而不是以其在薪酬差距问题上的地位而闻名”；第二处的"–the state’s …"和第三处"– is one of …"是对前文“摩根敦”的解释和进一步说明，分别译为“该州第三大城市”和“是全国仅有的几个女性收入超过男性同行的地方之一”。
No.1
cite /ˈsaɪt/ v.
① cited是cite的过去分词，表示to mention something as proof for a theory or as a reason why something has happened，引证、举例
【同义词】
cite的同义词积累：quote, reproduce, refer to, make reference to
【例句】
The company cited a 13 percent decline in new orders as evidence that overall demand for its products was falling.
公司举出新订单减少13%这一事实，以此来证明人们对其产品的总需求在下降。
② cite 还可以用作法律用语表示to officially name or mention someone or something in a law court, or to officially request someone to appear in a court of law，援引；传唤，传讯
【例句】
The lawyer cited two similar cases.
律师援引了两个类似的案例。
No.2
out-earn /aʊt, ɜːn/ v.
这个表达很形象，out-earn 意思是to earn more money or a higher income than 比……收入更高
【例句】
Inevitably, more of them will out-earn their husbands.
不可避免地，她们中会有更多的人赚得比她们的丈夫多。
生活大爆炸 第二季 第18集
No.3
counterpart /ˈkaʊntəpɑːt/ n.
counterpart是高频词，指a person or thing that has the same，与不同地方或组织的人或物）作用相同者，相对应者
【例句】
The prime minister is to meet his European counterparts to discuss the war against drugs.
首相将会见欧洲各国首脑就打击毒品犯罪进行商讨。
2
精读原文
Nationally, the gender wage gap persists; on average, US women earn 82 cents for every dollar their male peers are paid. But in 22 of the 250 metros examined in the analysis, women’s salaries are on par or better.
在全国范围内，性别工资差距仍然存在；平均而言，美国女性每赚取82美分，其男性同龄人则赚取1美元。但分析报告所考察的250个美国城市中，有22个城市女性的收入与同龄男性持平或更高。
📒精读解析
No.4
gender wage gap n.
gender wage gap指“性别工资差距”。
其中gap这个词大家比较熟悉，它表示a difference that separates people, or their opinions, situation, etc 差距，分歧
这里的wage gap 指 the difference between the amount that two different groups of people are paid，即我们常说的“工资差距”
【例句】
Efforts to close the gender wage gap.
努力缩小性别工资差距。
No.5
peer /pɪə(r)/ n. v.
① peer作为名词表示a person who is the same age or has the same social position or the same abilities as other people in a group, 同龄人；同辈；同等社会地位（或能力）的人
【例句】
Do you think it's true that teenage girls are less self-confident than their male peers?
你是否认为十几岁的女孩子不如同年龄的男孩子自信？
② peer还可以做动词，意为“仔细看，端详；费力地看”，peer to look carefully or with difficulty。
【例句】
When no one answered the door, she peered through the window to see if anyone was there.
没有人开门，她就费力地透过窗户朝里望去，看是否有人在。
No.6
par /pɑː(r)/ n.
par的意思是 the usual standard or condition，一般水平；通常状况
了解如下用法：on a par (with sb/sth) 指的是“和…同样，不相上下，不分伯仲”the same as or equal to someone or something。
【例句】
The regeneration of the city's downtown dock front will put it on a par with Nice or Cannes.
市中心临码头地区重建后，该市将能与尼斯或戛纳相媲美。
3
精读原文
Education and industry
教育和工业
There are some patterns that help explain these findings, says Richard Fry, senior researcher with Pew, who authored the report.
美国皮尤研究中心的高级研究员、同时也是报告的作者理查德·弗莱表示，有些模式可以帮助解释这些发现。
First, education is a factor. The places where women have parity or out-earn men – mostly cities along the country’s east and west coasts – have a higher percentage of young women with degrees, explains Fry. “In metros where young women have a bigger advantage educationally, the pay gap tends to be smaller,” he says. “Completion of bachelor’s degrees tends to boost earnings, and the pay gap tends to narrow down.”
首先，教育是一个因素。弗莱解释说，女性收入与男性持平或高于男性的地方 ——主要分布在美国东、西海岸的城市——拥有学位的年轻女性比例较高。他还解释道：“在教育方面，年轻女性具有更大优势的城市，薪酬差距往往较小。完成学士学位能够提高收入，薪酬差距也会随之缩小。”
📒精读解析：
文中出现了一个长难句。
The places where women have parity or out-earn men – mostly cities along the country’s east and west coasts – have a higher percentage of young women with degrees, explains Fry.
句子主干是The places have a higher percentage of young women with degrees，places 后面是个where引导的定语从句，破折号后面又对places做了进一步的补充说明。
【文化拓展】
皮尤研究中心（Pew Research Center）是美国的一间独立性民调机构，总部设于华盛顿特区。该中心对那些影响美国乃至世界的问题、态度与潮流提供信息资料。
No.7
pattern /ˈpætən/ n.
① pattern的意思是a particular way in which something is done, is organized, or happens, 模式，形式，方式
【例句】
A pattern is beginning to emerge from our analysis of the accident data.
我们对事故数据进行分析后发现一种模式开始显现出来。
② pattern还可指something that is used as an example, especially to Copy, “范本，典范；榜样”
【例句】
The design is so good it's sure to set the pattern for many others.
这个设计太好了，一定会成为许多其他设计的样板。
No.8
parity /ˈpærəti/ n.
Parity 意为equality, especially of pay or position，（薪水或职位）同等，平等，在本文中指“同等的工资待遇”结合上下文译为“女性收入与男性持平”。
【例句】
Firefighters are demanding pay parity with police.
消防队员要求收入与警察享有同等的工资待遇。
傲骨之战第三季第4集
No.9
boost /buːst/ v.
① to improve or increase something，改善；提高；增强；推动（强调目的）
【例句】
The theatre managed to boost its audiences by cutting ticket prices.
剧院设法通过降低票价来增加观众数量。
② the act of boosting something，改善；提高；增强；推动（强调过程）
【例句】
The lowering of interest rates will give a much-needed boost to the economy.
利率的下调将会给经济注入急需的推动力。
【同义词】
boost 常用的有：promote，enhance
No.10
narrow down v.
narrow down : to make a number or list of things smaller, by removing the things that are least important, necessary, or suitable, 把…缩减，压缩
【例句】
We narrowed the list of candidates down from ten to three.
我们把候选人从10位筛选至3位。
4
精读原文
Another factor influencing the wage gap is the type of jobs and industries that dominate certain geographic areas. The second-largest employer in Wenatchee is the metro’s school district; in the US, women fill more than three-quarters of education jobs. Women’s share of manufacturing jobs, on the other hand, is below 30%. In a number of metro areas where the wage gap is largest – including Saginaw, Michigan; Decatur, Illinois; and Mansfield, Ohio – manufacturers are among the top employers.
影响工资差距的另一个因素是主导某些特定地区的工作和行业类型。韦纳奇市排行第二的雇佣大户是该市的学区；在美国，女性占据了超过四分之三的教育工作。而另一方面，女性在制造业中的工作比例低于30%。在一些工资差距最大的都市区，制造商即是其中最大的雇主——包括密歇根州的萨吉诺、伊利诺伊州的迪凯特以及俄亥俄州的曼斯菲尔德。
📒精读解析
No.11
dominate /ˈdɒmɪneɪt/ v.
① to have control over a place or person, 统治, 控制
【例句】
They work as a group - no one person is allowed to dominate.
他们以团队的形式工作——不允许其中任何人独揽大权。
② to be the largest, most important, or most noticeable part of something, 在…中占首要地位；拥有优势；最明显的
【例句】
The dispute is likely to dominate the news.
这场纠纷很可能成为新闻报道的焦点。
No.12
manufacturer n.
/,mænju'fæktʃərə/
manufacturer指a company that produces goods in large numbers 制造商（大批量生产商品的企业）
【例句】
Germany is a major manufacturer of motor cars.
德国是汽车生产大国。
5
精读原文
The motherhood factor
母职因素
When – or if – women choose to have children can play into a geographic area’s wage gap. Throughout the country – and across the globe, in countries including the UK – women suffer from a ‘motherhood penalty’ that widens the wage gap; once women become mothers, they earn even less relative to men (meanwhile, men see their earnings go up when they become parents). By some estimates, mothers make only 70 cents for every dollar fathers do.
女性何时（或是否）选择生孩子会影响到一个地区的工资差距。在全国范围内（以及包括英国在内的全球各国）女性正在遭受着“母职惩罚”，这种惩罚扩大了工资差距；一旦女性成为母亲，她们的收入相对于男性来说就更少了（同时，男性在成为父亲后，他们的收入会增加）。据估计，父亲每赚一美元，母亲只赚70美分。
Motherhood is indeed a major driving factor of these wage gap statistics, says Alexandra Killewald, a professor of sociology at Harvard University. “The estimated penalty to your hourly wage for being a mom is in the neighborhood of 10 or so percent, compared to what we would have expected if you had continued without having children,” she says.
哈佛大学社会学教授亚历山德拉·基尔瓦尔德表示，母亲身份确实是这些工资差距统计数据的一个主要驱动因素。她说：“与继续从事同一份工作而不生孩子的情况相比，做母亲后的时薪惩罚预计在10%左右”。
📒精读解析：
自本段起，文章分别对女性成为母亲过程中可能遇到的各种情况进行说明，包括the motherhood factor 母职因素、motherhood penalty 母职惩罚等，在阅读中需对各类新概念进行理解。
No.13
anecdotally adv.
/ˌænɪkˈdəʊtəli/
“motherhood pay penalty” refers to the pay gap between working mothers and similar women without dependent children. “母职惩罚”指的是有工作的母亲与没有子女的类似女性之间的薪酬差距。
图片来自联合国妇女署（UN Women）
No.14
statistics /stə'tɪstɪks/ n.
① information based on a study of the number of times something happens or is present, or other numerical facts,统计数据；统计资料
【例句】
Statistics show/suggest that women live longer than men.
统计资料显示女性比男性寿命长。
② a fact in the form of a number that shows information about something,统计数字
【例句】
The city's most shocking statistic is its high infant mortality rate.
这座城市最令人震惊的统计数字是其高婴儿死亡率。
6
精读原文
So, in regions where women become mothers earlier, the pay gap suffers, too. In places where the average maternal age at first birth is lower, the wage gap is wider – and the inverse is also true. In the New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania metro areas, for instance, women earn 102% of what men do. In Manhattan, located within this geographical cohort, the average age at first birth is more than 31.
因此，在女性较早成为母亲的地区，薪酬差距也受到影响。在女性首次生育平均年龄较低的地方，工资差距更大，反之亦然。例如，在纽约、新泽西和宾夕法亚都市区，女性的收入是男性的102%。位于这个地理队列中的曼哈顿，首次生育的平均年龄超过31岁。
📒精读解析：
No.15
maternal /məˈtɜːnl/ adj.
maternal意为behaving or feeling in the way that a mother does towards her child, especially in a kind, loving way, 母亲的；母亲般的
【例句】
maternal instincts
母亲的天性
She is very maternal towards her employees.
她对员工十分慈和。
相关词语：paternal /pəˈtɜːnl/ adj. 父亲的；父亲般关爱的；父系的
No.16
inverse /ˌɪnˈvɜːs/ adj.
inverse 是指opposite in relation to something else, 相反的
【例句】
Their generosity was in inverse proportion/relation to their income.
(= the more money they had the less generous they were)
他们的慷慨程度与他们的收入水平成反比。
文中的the inverse is also true表示“反之亦然”，相当于vice versa，大家可以一并积累起来，在写作或翻译的时候可以用上。
No.17
cohort /ˈkəʊhɔːt/ n.
① cohort 在本文中的含义是指a group of people who share a characteristic, usually age 有共同特点（通常指年龄）的一群人
【例句】
This study followed up a cohort of 386 patients aged 65+ for six months after their discharge home.
这项研究对386位年龄在65岁以上、出院回家的患者进行了6个月的跟踪观察。
我们从《血族》中学学相关表达
血族第四季第3集
② cohort还可以指a group of people who support a particular person, usually a leader,（通常指领袖的）追随者，支持者；党羽
【例句】
The Mayor and his cohorts have abused their positions of power.
市长和他的同党们滥用职权。
7
精读原文
A harbinger of progress – or not?
进步的预兆——或者不是？
Although this new data provides good signals for women in many locations, there’s a caveat: the Pew report only examines the data of women ages 16 to 29. Historical patterns say that after 30, the gap will begin to widen.
虽然这个新数据为许多地方的女性发出了良好的信号，但有个问题需要注意：皮尤研究中心的报告只研究了16至29岁女性的数据。历史模型表明，30岁以后，两性工资差距将开始扩大。
And as people – young voters in particular – push issues such as childcare subsidies, tax credits and other policies that would benefit women in the workforce, Fry says, some of that parity could become more permanent.
弗莱说，随着人们（尤其是年轻选民）推动诸如儿童保育补贴、税收抵免和其他有利于女性就业的政策，这种平等可能会变得更加持久。
📒精读解析：
No.18
harbinger /ˈhɑːbɪndʒə(r)/ n.
a person or thing that shows that something is going to happen soon, especially something bad,（尤指坏事的）先兆，预兆
【举例】
a harbinger of doom
毁灭的先兆
《早间新闻》里是这样用“预兆”的：
早间新闻第一季第10集
No.19
caveat /ˈkæviæt/ n.
caveat意为a warning to consider something before taking any more action, or a statement that limits a more general statement，（进一步行动前的）警告，告诫；限制条款，文中结合上下文译为“有个问题需要注意”。
【例句】
He agreed to the interview, with the caveat that he could approve the final article.
他答应接受访问，条件是访问稿刊登前须经他同意。
No.20
childcare subsidies n.
childcare subsidies是“育儿补贴”的意思，subsidies译为money given as part of the cost of something, to help or encourage it to happen,补助金；津贴，补贴
【例句】
The company received a substantial government subsidy.
公司得到了大笔的政府津贴。
No.21
tax credits n.
tax credits是指credit means a deduction from an expense or asset account,税收抵免
【例句】
When you claim federal tax credits and deductions on your tax return, you can change the amount of tax you owe.
当你在纳税申报单上申请联邦税收减免时，你可以更改你所欠的税额。
TED演讲Kelsey Johnson: 光污染的问题
【文化拓展】
税收抵免是指准许纳税人将其某些合乎规定的特殊支出，按定比例或全部从其应纳税额中抵扣，以减轻其税负。
美国报税优惠政策有三类：分别是 Tax Credits（税收抵免）、Deductions（税收减免）、Adjustments（税收调整），这三种税务优惠政策可以分为两类，我们简要通过例子进行说明：
Tax Credits：应交税款的抵免，比如你原本要交300美元的税款，现在通过一定比例从应纳税额中抵扣后，只需要交100美元，最多可以全免。
Deductions 和 Adjustment：目的是减少应交税的收入总额，比如你原来有1000美元的收入要交税，通过税收减免及调整后，只需要交800美元要交税。
8
精读原文
"We could think about policies that would, say, reduce the use of mandatory overtime or things like that, " Killewald says, "that would make jobs easier for moms, in particular, to stay in. It's hard to know whether we'll see the same kind of erosion in relative pay for these women as they go through the life course, or if women who were born more recently really have made progress. "
“我们可以考虑一些政策，比如说，减少强制性加班或类似情况的政策，”基尔瓦尔德说，“这会让妈妈们的工作更加轻松，特别是能让她们留在工作岗位上。这些女性经历了生育后相对薪酬是否会有一样的缩减，或者相对更年轻的女性在薪酬上是否真的取得了进步，我们无从得知。”
📒精读解析：
It's hard to know whether we'll see the same kind of erosion in relative pay for these women as they go through the life course, or if women who were born more recently really have made progress.
句子主干是 It's hard to know+whether引导的宾语从句+or+if 引导的宾语从句。
前半句中，as they go through the life course做状语，通过上下文可知，这里的the life course指的就是“生育”。后半句中，woman后面又跟了个who引导的定语从句。
No.22
mandatory /ˈmændətəri/ adj.
mandatory 是指Something that is mandatory must be done, or is demanded by law,强制的；必须履行的；法定的
【同义词】
mandatory常用的近义词还有：managed，compulsive 意为“强制的；命令的”
【例句】
Athletes must undergo a mandatory drugs test before competing in the championship.
运动员在锦标赛前必须进行强制性药检。
No.23
erosion /ɪˈrəʊʒ(ə)n/ n.
① the fact of a good quality or situation being gradually lost or destroyed，削弱；
逐步的破坏
【例句】
The survey reveals a gradual erosion of the president's popularity and support.
民意调查显示了总统声望和所获支持的逐渐削弱。
② the fact of soil, stone, etc. being gradually damaged and removed by the waves, rain, or wind，侵蚀；腐蚀；磨损
【举例】
soil/coastal erosion
水土流失/海岸侵蚀
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