>Shouldn't the obvious conclusion be that men and women have equally as much to contribute?
Not really, because what men traditionally had to contribute was their physical strength to perform labor. Having that as a requirement for many lucrative positions like manufacturing and resource extraction is what allowed men to out earn women with their labor in the past. Women never filled those jobs with physical requirements en masse, and so they now already occupy a far greater portion of the other parts of the workforce that men must now compete for.
Not really, because what men traditionally had to contribute was their physical strength to perform labor. Having that as a requirement for many lucrative positions like manufacturing and resource extraction is what allowed men to out earn women with their labor in the past. Women never filled those jobs with physical requirements en masse, and so they now already occupy a far greater portion of the other parts of the workforce that men must now compete for.