Hidden behind the stories about highly paid female CEOs, business owners, politicians and athletes, there remains one stubborn financial fact.

On average, U.S. women earn about 80 cents to every dollar earned by men.

While there's plenty of research on why, some of the debate gets down to women themselves, says a longtime financial counselor.

"Left to their own devices, women underprice themselves. In the work force, they undervalue themselves more so than men," said Mikelann Valterra, a Seattle-based author, money coach and founder of the online Women's Earning Institute. "Even if you eliminated all the outside factors, you'd still have women underearning men."

While the gender wage gap has shrunk – in 1979, for instance, full-time working women earned just 62 percent as much as men, compared with close to 80 percent in 2008, according to a July report by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics – it's still a concern.

Given that women generally live longer, earn less and rack up fewer years in the work force, maximizing earnings is essential. And given the odds of getting divorced, being widowed or staying single, women often find themselves flying solo when it comes to finances.

According to a recent AARP financial survey, nearly two-thirds of U.S. women ages 40 to 79 have already dealt with a major financial "life crisis" – job loss, divorce, death of a spouse or serious illness.

That's why Valterra, author of "Why Women Earn Less," believes women need to undo some of the unconscious workplace habits they may have acquired. Women, she says, are often "underearners" because they don't ask for a raise, don't negotiate their initial salary, don't raise their fees if self-employed, avoid being visible at work, often donate instead of charge for their work or stay in a job too long.

Despite the strides women have made in the workplace in the last 30 years, Valterra believes they still carry around a lot of emotional baggage attached to money. "We don't want to be pushy, we don't want to rock the boat. … In 2009, that hasn't changed in female DNA."

In her view, women need to worry less, speak up more and become skilled at negotiating their salary.

That's the message she'll carry as one of a dozen female financial speakers at the third annual "Money Wise Women" conference Saturday at California State University, Sacramento.

But not everyone feels that women are left behind, wage-wise. Paula Lee, president of her own environmental consulting company, National Analytical Laboratories Inc. in Rancho Cordova, says, "I don't see a pay gap. … It doesn't come down to being a woman. It's more about 'Can you deliver?' "

Lee, who's been in business almost 20 years in a male-dominated industry, says experience, certification and integrity count as much or more than gender in getting the job – and getting commensurate pay.

As a businesswoman whose grandmother didn't drive and whose mother didn't work outside the home, Lee believes there's generational change that pushes women to equal footing with men. "It's changed with every generation. My 24-year-old daughter has no problem saying what she needs and where she's going," says Lee.

Statistics bear that out. According to the 2008 federal labor statistics, women ages 16 to 34 are closer financially to their male counterparts, earning 90 percent as much in full-time wages.

Nevertheless, the long-term financial penalty of not starting out on the same pay scale can be daunting.

In her book, "Women Don't Ask, Negotiation and the Gender Divide," Carnegie Mellon University economics professor Linda Babcock compares two equally qualified 22-year-old job candidates – a man and woman. Each gets a job offer of $25,000. "John" negotiates his salary up to $30,000, while "Helen" quietly accepts her $25,000.

In Babcock's example, assuming each earns identical 3 percent raises every year, by the time both are 60 years old, their annual pay gap would be more than $15,000. Helen would be earning roughly $76,900 to John's $92,250. Over those 38 years, he would have earned about $361,000 more than Helen.

Did Valterra ever fail to speak up for herself?

"Oh, heck yes," she said, speaking from her Seattle-area home. "My first job, it didn't even occur to me to negotiate. I had a master's degree, but I was just so grateful to get a job – at $12 an hour, working as a glorified secretary for a Bay Area think tank – that I didn't even think to say: 'Would you consider $13 an hour?' "

Her turning point was years later, while living in Seattle and juggling marriage, motherhood and her job as a money coach. She'd paid for a baby sitter and was counting on the income from a scheduled client who canceled at the last minute.

"I just realized: I am not making enough for as hard as I'm working. I cannot keep underselling myself or I'll go out of business."

That led to a sizable fee hike, which "suddenly made my clients much more serious. Cancellations went down, and the type of client and their commitment went way up."

Even in a shaky economy, when job security is on everyone's mind, Valterra says women need to assess what they're making.

"I know people are more fearful. But if you're going to work 40 hours a week, why on Earth wouldn't you ask for what you're worth when it benefits you and your family? Ask for a raise for your kids' sake."

For details on other speakers at the Money Wise Women's conference, see accompanying box or go to www.moneywisewomen.net.

Have a personal finance question? Contact The Bee's Claudia Buck at (916) 321-1968.