Transcript: Women taken to the cleaners
By Bankrate.com

Anchor Intro: The pay gap between men and women in the workplace has been widely documented. But women may also be discriminated against in other places as well, like the dry cleaners or car dealers. Bankrate.com finds out if women are paying more, and what they can do about it.

Voice over 1: What drives the prices we pay for things? Ask a woman if they pay more for things like car repair, and some will say fairness takes a back seat to gender.

SOT: "They see you walk in, they think you're naive, you don't know and you're just going to pay for whatever they tell you because they're telling you they need to fix it."

Voice over 2: Paranoia? Maybe not. This 1991 Harvard Law Review study found that men do often get a better deal than women when it comes to new car pricing.

Voice over 3: And another place some women have felt taken to the cleaners is when they're taken to the cleaners. A blouse often costs more to clean than man's dress shirt.

Voice over 4: But as it turns out, there may not be much price discrimination at the dry cleaners. Why? Because even though a blouse may cost more to clean than a shirt, it's a lot more labor intensive.

SOT: "Some people don't understand that business shirts and women's are different sizes, different fabric, different cuts. And there's a shirt machine that fits only business shirts."

Voice over 5: Most women's blouses, on the other hand, don't fit the machines and have to be hand-pressed. That's why they sometimes cost more.

Standup: Still, whether it's at the dry cleaner, the hair salon, the clothing store or the car dealer, if you feel you're a victim of gender or any kind of price discrimination, speak up. Over time, that's what tends to change things. For Bankrate.com, I'm Kristin Arnold.