Léa noticed this during a conversation with her colleagues. Holder of a master’s degree in business management from the University of Sydney, Australia, the 25-year-old young woman had been hired a few months earlier as a project manager under a permanent employment contract in a scale-up, a start-up up having succeeded in making its operation viable. “When talking with them, I realize that I am paid 32 k [32 000 euros] per year compared to 40k for them. I was shockedshe remembers. However, I was more qualified than some, I spoke more languages and I had more responsibilities. »
Léa (all the people designated by their first name wished to remain anonymous) then goes to see her manager, who kicks in, accusing her of not being “never happy”. During the four and a half years that she remained with the company, the young executive will obtain raises: “But, as I left 8k late, I was never able to make up the difference”she regrets. Looking back, Léa, now 32 years old and product manager in a consulting agency, knows that her main mistake was not sufficiently negotiating her salary when she was hired: “Now I know what to do: ask for more than you think you deserve. That’s what boys do. »
Léa’s situation is not an isolated case. According to the “Insertion 2024” barometer, carried out each year by the Conference of Grandes Écoles, graduates of Grandes Écoles continue to earn less than their male peers upon leaving studies: “This year, with equal experience and diploma, the average salary excluding bonuses of men (39,804 euros) is 5.2% (37,835 euros) higher than that of women. » The banking and insurance, consulting and information and communication technologies sectors, where salaries are the highest, record the largest gaps in hiring.
“The backlash can be very harsh”
“Five laws since 1972 and it’s still not resolved! », gets exasperated Elise Bordet. At 32, the founder of the 2082 association – in reference to the year when women should earn as much as men if the gap continues to narrow at the current speed – has made it her mission to help these the latter to better negotiate their salaries. To do this, she relied on her own experience: an agricultural engineer, holder of a thesis in immunology, an MBA at the very selective College of Engineers, as well as a university diploma in artificial intelligence and health. , the young woman has long had great difficulty asking for raises. “I had negotiated my entry into the company well, but then I got really stuck! », she says.
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