Doing Our Part to Close the Pay Gap

Today is Equal Pay day. This date represents the number of extra days it takes a women to earn the same amount a man earned in the previous year. On average, women are paid just 79 cents on the dollar, with a projection, that as it trends, won’t lead to equality until 2058. That’s 42 years to go before we close the gap!

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Why should we care?

The simple answer is, when one wins, we all win. Women occupy over 50% of the minimum wage jobs. Equal pay would contribute to a 2.9% increase in our GDP and reduce our poverty rate to 3.9% (half of what it is currently).

We can wait for the government to put policies into place, or we can do our part now.

  • Assess your practices and conduct a pay audit. Are women being paid the same as their male counterparts? Are they being afforded the same opportunities? The Department of Labor offers some tips for evaluating.
  • Offer equivalent paid leave benefits to men and women. Minimizing the stereotype that women are the primary caregivers. (Kudos to Coca-Cola for this recent change!)

    coca cola paid parental leave

  • Purposefully recruit more women for your leadership roles.
  • Set up a mentoring program. Studies show mentees were promoted 5 times more and mentors 6 times more than those not in a mentor-mentee relationship.
  • Create a supportive environment that encourages women to take on a path that leads them to the c-suite.

Let’s do our part to close this gap long before 2058!

The United State of Women Profile Photo

(Create your own profile photo to support equality for women here)

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