Study: Lesbians earn more than straight women

This is admittedly surprising: Gay women make 6% more than their straight counterparts, according to a study Big Think picked up. No word on whether these women are openly gay are not (which is a pretty important factor), though there's a similar catch. The study divides the lesbians in the study into two distinct groups: those who were married to men before, and those who were not. (That is to say, those who are super gay, and those who are not. JKJK.)

Men have historically been paid more to work outside the home—that has given women the comparative advantage in doing all the laundry. Of course the world has changed, and the gap between women’s and men’s wages has narrowed. But if a woman believes that she will eventually be married to a man who earns a higher income than she does, then she has less to gain from investing in human capital that will give her an advantage on the labor market.

Historically, that may have been true (this study took place in 2009) but with growing divorce rates, prenuptials and, hey, paternity leave, most women know that spousal roles today are not so well defined. But there's still something to be said for the kind of skin you grow and the determination that springs from the fact that most states in the union won't even recognize your kind of love. There's also something there with masculine will that may or may not apply to lesbians -- likely not -- though it seems like it would be a popular answer with men.

What do you make of the pay gap?