Humanities Desk | Net Radio

Meaghan Stout was 16 years old when she first learned she was being paid less than a man. She was the head hostess at Round the Bend Steakhouse, in Ashland, Nebraska, training a younger employee. The two were bantering about some of the more frustrating parts of the job when he mentioned his pay."The only reason why I'm still here is because I make $11 an hour." he said, according to Stout,. She said she didn't believe it. "No you don't," she replied. "Yeah, I do," he said. Armed with that information, Stout asked for a raise and got it.Speaking to the owner of the restaurant, she found out that the kitchen manager had given raises to the male workers, but not to the women. Even after getting the raise, Stout said she was mad at the kitchen manager for giving her co-worker that raise so early in his time on the job. The new employee had a fraction of her experience, but was compensated more because he was friends with the kitchen manager. “It was kind of depressing to only be barely in high school and finding