Visualizations like these certainly have their place, and I actually appreciate that the OP didn't offer commentary in this case. This graph acts as a blank can

Visualizations like these certainly have their place, and I actually appreciate that the OP didn't offer commentary in this case. This graph acts as a blank canvas onto which people project their conversational biases. Each person has their own idea of what the pay gap is. For me, the pay gap encompasses all sociological factors that lead to women making less than men. When the numbers are squeezed to only compare men and women by exact position, the question "why aren't women holding high power positions?" is implicitly answered with "because women are incapable," and that's a gross untruth. (This is not to say that such research has no value — it is quite important in the context of coming up with solutions.) If you're quick to wave around the 97% number, you may not be treating this problem with the humility that it deserves.