I worked a lot more overtime when I was married, and I still make more now that I'm single. As an added bonus, the money I make now is all mine.

That's why working in a Union shop is the best, all workers get paid the same, contractually. Married, single, male or female. But when you leave the union eviroment and move into the managment ranks, all bets are off.

I think marriage motivates you to work harder, is all this is. You want your children provided for, you want them to look up to you, the stability of your marriage is partly dependent on your wife's perception the sense of security and stability and continuity you bring to the table, so you work to make those things happen. If you're single you're not challenged in that way. That's not to say flying solo is inferior, it's just different. And less exhausting.

Having the responsibility of a family is great motivator for someone to seek higher pay. This is a factor a lot of people would not consider I think.

In today's economy having a family to support means that you will often have to work more hours than you would if single.

Stay at home parents work too, duh. They just don't get paid.

I'm single and I don't have kids. I make the same pay as my co-workers, but not my bosses. The married woman and men make about the same hours as the single women and men. This is in the fast food industry though. I make the least in hours due to my SSDI income. I'm just happy with the paycheck I get. I do more and I have been doing my job longer than some of them, so they look to me to do other's jobs. I can't become and manager (and I don't want to, too much stress now as a crew member) because of the hours. I don't compare what I make to anyone else. I just focus on my hours and the money I make. I don't ever plan to get married. I do plan to get a career after college though. Even then, I don't have to worry about someone else's paycheck. I mind my own business.

What percentage of these married men work longer hours just to get away from their families? Lol

Women want the security of a man with a big paycheck.

I looked at the source of the study, The Institue for Family Studies. Here is what I found.

n 2012, Bradford Wilcox was a peer reviewer on a controversial research paper that was called “disgraceful” by the scientific community. This research was funded by the highly Questionable Witherspoon Institute that promotes anti-gay marriage and anti-abortion propaganda. While IFS themselves tends to be well sourced, their senior fellow Mr. Wilcox endorsed a poor scientific study. Overall, we rate the Institute for Family Studies (IFS) right biased based on story selection that favors conservative causes and mixed for factual reporting based on the endorsement of poor science. (D. Van Zandt 3/16/2018)

This does not mean that their data is not fact based, I just like to always see the source.

Yeah, perhaps. Typically men lose out in the divorce. I had to give up half of everything (of which I earned 95% of) and pay $3,800 / month to my ex-wife for half the length of the marriage. Spousal support, no children. Just based on income differential. Ironic that she used to say, "Women are sex objects and men are success objects"...

Marriage has roots in chattle arrangements and is reserved for those who make bad decisions or want bad things to happen to them. It's the leading cause of faster aging and divorce.

Married men spend more time at work because they don't want to go home to their wives. Staying late at the office tonight honey. Tonight and every night until the inevitable divorce occurs.

Never marry! Never again.

Are you proposing to me? Lol

Ok, but I'm not falling into that trap today. Today I choose to be happy & that means NO MARRIAGE, Hurray❣

It costs a lot more to be married. You need two cars, bigger house or apartment, and if you have kids the cost of living sky rockets. College for one kid can break you. Have 2 or 3 kids and you had better amass a fortune.

I think married men do make higher salaries because the old addages are still there"

1. They are the primary breadwinner and support the family.
2. Men tend to be more stable if they marry and plan on having a family
3. A single man can travel, be transferred and more adaptable to the company's needs but without a family there is a fear they can be recruited by competitors easily.

Married men may make more but I'll bet single men get to keep more of what they make!