The Pay Gap Still Exists

Equal Pay Day illustrates the pay gap between men and women in the US. The date for this year, March 12th, was selected because it shows how much longer women have to work to earn the same pay men earned the year before. This means that women have to work 15 months to earn the same pay men earned in 12 months.

The part of Equal Pay Day that may be confusing is that the day is meant to draw attention to the pay gaps all women face, yet it is not an accurate date for all women. Black women earn substantially less than white men, at 69 cents for every dollar a white man earns. The accurate Equal Pay Day for Black women is July. Equal Pay Day for Latinas is in October, with Latinas earning 52 cents for every dollar that white men earn.

Even the day of the week of Equal Pay Day is significant. It shows how many days women must work to earn the same as men earned the week before. The general Equal Pay Day was on Tuesday, but the equal pay days move further down the week as women of color are acknowledged. Equal Pay Day for Latinas, one of the lowest paid groups of women in the US, is on a Thursday, showing that they must work almost a complete extra week to match the earning power of men. 

Disabled women earn 64 cents for every dollar earned by nondisabled white men, with some disabled women legally earning below minimum wage. There isn’t an Equal Pay Day for disabled women, but it would be shortly after the Equal Pay Day for Black women.  https://www.air.org/event/closing-pay-gap-workers-disabilities

Immigrant women earn 77 cents for every dollar earned by men, with some ethnicities, such as Mexican women, earning even less. There also isn’t an Equal Pay Day specifically for immigrant women, but it would be after the celebrated Equal Pay Day on March 12th.

The inequities in pay between men and women was partially addressed with the Equal Pay Act during the Kennedy administration in 1963. This act outlawed paying women less than men for the same work, but left loopholes in place. Employers can differentiate between pay for men and women based on several other factors, such as merit, productivity, seniority or work quality, as long as the differentiation isn’t based on sex. 

The Pay Check Fairness Act has been introduced before congress several times to close these loopholes. It has been introduced before Congress several times, but has been unsuccessful, usually dying in committee. It was introduced again last year to strong Republican opposition. Mitch McConnell, who was Senate Minority Leader at the time, said “Senate Democrats intend to focus this month on the demands of their radical base, exploiting the cause of pay fairness to send a windfall to trial lawyers, saddling hospitals, schools and small businesses with crippling new legal burdens if they fail to keep pace with woke social norms.” 

It might not have been so easy for McConnell to dismiss this legislation if he truly understood the power of women in the US. We work, we raise and take care of families, we lead movements and businesses and we vote. The nation cannot survive without us, so pay us what we are worth. Don’t make our families suffer just because we are women. Don’t make us face poverty just because we are women. You, legislators, will see women in your offices and hear us on telephone calls demanding equal pay. It is time to pass the Pay Check Fairness Act. We don’t want to acknowledge another Equal Pay Day.

By MaKeda Scott 

(she/her/hers)

Family Values @ Work Communications Associate