Today, Tuesday, March 14, 2023, is the national observance of Equal Pay Day.  It is the day representing how far into 2023 women had to work to earn as much money as men earned in 2022. According to statistics released in 2020 by the United States Census Bureau, women are paid, on average, 82 cents for every dollar their male counterparts are paid — a gap of 18 cents. In 2022, it took women 73 days extra days to make up for that lost income. However, women are not making up the gap; they are getting further behind because they will end 2023 behind men, just like they did in 2022.

Equal Pay Act Soccer

FILE – United States soccer women’s national team member Megan Rapinoe speaks during an event to mark Equal Pay Day in the South Court Auditorium in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House Campus in March 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo file photo)

Pay disparity is not a new issue. The Pay Equity Act of 1963 was designed to abolish the disparity in wages between men and women. At the current pace, the pay gap may not be closed for another 50 years.

Because women make less than men over the course of their career, more women live in poverty and women have less money in retirement. According to The Annie E. Casey Foundation, in 2015, Maine had 83,000 single parent households. The vast majority of those parents are women. More women than ever provide the sole income for their families. Many women are the only parent in a household and need income for childcare as well as the upkeep of the household and housing.  Often these single parents do not get time off for parental care if children are not well, which leads in some cases to taking leave without pay.

So how do women make progress?

One way is to raise the issue at your work place. If your employer does not do a pay equity analysis based on gender, ask for one. And ask again (and again) if they do not comply. The slow progress in closing the gender pay gap is a sign of the resistance of companies to meet it head on. An important step is asking the question and reporting the results. In November 2019, Starbucks released their findings on pay equity. Starbucks found that in their U.S. franchises, men and women were paid equally for the same work, and there were no differences in pay across different races and/or ethnicities. CitiGroup also reported an analysis, with much less favorable findings (women make 29% less than men). They now know there is an issue and claim to be addressing it. Neither company were required to do this analysis nor report the results. As a consumer, we can now “vote with our wallets”, supporting companies that have achieved pay equity or at least are willing to ask the question and implement changes.

A second way is for women to stand up for equal pay and for themselves. If a prospective employer cannot show that women and men are paid equally for the job you are seeking, it makes sense to look elsewhere. Positive signs include a hiring process that seeks diversity through affirmative action, written pay and benefit policies, job descriptions and evaluation procedures. Also, always negotiate your starting salary when considering your job offer (over and above negotiating benefits). Women are less likely than men to negotiate, which often results in a lower salary compared to men in the same position. (Here is a free salary negotiation course:  https://www.aauw.org/resources/programs/salary/)

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Finally, if you have the option, join a union. Women in unions earn 35% more than women in non-union workplaces.

Another way to close the pay gap is through federal legislation such as the Paycheck Fairness Act and the Fair Pay Act. That is not a solution popular with employers, but it may be necessary. For employers who continue to pay women less, legal penalties or EEOC action may be the only remedies.

Finally, join national efforts to affect change.  The American Association for University Women (AAUW) has been fighting for equity in the workplace since its beginnings.  You can add your voice to the voices of over 170,000 women and men in AAUW who want to make a difference.   In Maine, you can join one of the four branches of AAUW, including one in Waterville.  For more information, see aauw.org or email aauwofmaine@gmail.com.

Martha E. Arterberry and Bets Brown on behalf of the American Association of University Women, Waterville Branch, AAUWofmaine@gmail.com

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