Reminder: Equal Pay Day is Different for Women of Color
Today marks Equal Pay Day, the day symbolizing how much the average woman has to work into 2018 in order to make the same amount of money an average man did in the 2017 calendar year. When the Equal Pay Act was passed by John F. Kennedy Jr. in 1963, women on average were making 54 cents to each dollar a man made. Today, over 50 years later, while there has been some progress, a large gender pay gap still remains with women making approximately 80 cents to the dollar. And this figure does not take into account race and ethnicity.
While April 10 is Equal Pay Day for all women, it is not accurate for women of color, who are unsurprisingly disproportionately affected. Asian American women’s Equal Pay Day was earlier this year February 22nd, Black women will have to wait until August 7th, Native American women until September 27th, and Latinx women will have to work all the way until November 1st, 2018 to make what a white man brought home in 2017. In fact, median wages for Latinx women are commonly close to poverty-levels.
Education has often been pointed to as a solution to narrowing the pay gap, but the data tells us it’s not enough. Yes, as education increases so do earnings for both men and women. And there are more women than men getting graduate degrees. But at all educational levels, the gap remains. And white women earn more than both Black and Latinx women at all levels. When you factor in increased student debt from these additional degrees as well as the inability to pay them off as quickly from lower earnings, the situation looks worse.
The Institute for Women’s Policy Research estimates that we will have to wait until the year 2059 to see the gender pay gap closed. Black women will have to wait until 2124 and Latinx women until 2233.
So how do we women “celebrate” this day?
- For one, continue to empower and encourage each other at work. There’s a lot to be said for the power of community and network among women in the workplace. They can provide mentorship and support when you need it. And an increased number of women pushing for transparency and equality will be louder than one voice doing it alone.
- If you are a white woman, be sure to acknowledge and use your privilege to help women of color ensure that their voices are heard.
- Decline to share salary history (which by the way is currently illegal for employers to demand in many states) with potential employers, ask for what you deserve, and negotiate from there. The gender pay gap means that you almost definitely were paid less than you should have been at your last job. That number is not a good indicator of what you should earn in the next one. Here are some ideas for how you can respond when faced with this question.
- Use the tools that exist when an incident of harassment or discrimination occurs at work. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) was established in 1965 and serves as the main agency investigating for workplace-related discrimination complaints. Make sure to file any incidents through this agency. All complaints result in subsequent time-consuming and potentially costly activities for the company while the EEOC carries out its investigation.
Regardless of your gender and ethnicity, you can help to erase the gender pay gap by being aware of the disparity and doing what you can within your sphere of influence to ensure that everyone is treated fairly.
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