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Gender differences in salaries still exist. Based on the 2009 Automotive Fleet salary survey (an online survey of fleet managers around the country), male fleet managers earn an average annual salary of $79,429, while female fleet managers earn an average annual salary of $67,378 - a difference of more than $12,000 a year.

Does Experience Affect Salaries?

According to the AF survey, male fleet managers with 1-3 years experience earned an average annual salary of $68,500, while female fleet managers with 1-3 years experience earned an average annual salary of $65,500. This experience band also represented the smallest difference in salaries, at only $3,000.

The salary inequality remains relatively consistent between 4-20 years experience. The largest difference between male and female fleet manager salaries occurred in the 20-plus years experience range. While female fleet managers reported an average annual income of $71,666 at this experience level, male fleet managers reported an average annual income of $87,083 - a difference of more than $15,000.

Salaries Differ by Education and Fleet Size

Female fleet managers again report a lower average annual salary at almost all education levels. However, females with a technical degree reportedly earn slightly more than male counterparts with the same degree. In the greatest salary difference among education levels, males with Liberal Arts degrees reported an average salary of $85,312 while females reported an average salary of $70,500, a more than $14,000 annual difference.

Females led in average annual salaries with fleets of 51-150 vehicles ($72,500 average annual salary - female versus $60,000 average annual salary - male). Female salaries taper off again until they come close to matching salaries at the 501-1,000 vehicle level ($68,833 female average annual salary versus $69,583 male average annual salary).

The largest salary inequality by fleet size occurs at the 1,000-plus vehicle range, with an annual salary difference of $15,624.