Equal Pay Day

On this Equal Pay Day we recognize the work that is left to do and we celebrate the gains we have made.

Equal Pay Day — on March 14 this year — represents the number of days that women need to work into the new year to match the wages earned by men in the previous year.

A bit of good news: Today is the earliest Equal Pay Day since we began observing it in 1996, one day earlier than it was last year.

But it's not good enough: On average, women only make 84¢ for every dollar made by men.

The disparity of income is even more pronounced for women of color, Native and Indigenous women, and mothers:

For Black women, Equal Pay Day lands on July 27 this year. Four months from now.

For moms, Equal Pay Day is on August 15. Five months from today.

For Latinas, Equal Pay Day will be on October 5. Seven months from now.

For Native and Indigenous women, Equal Pay Day will be on November 30. To put this in perspective; Native and Indigenous women have to work for almost two years to earn what the average man earns.

None of this is OK. Everyone deserves to be compensated fairly for the work they do and we must all work to overcome and end the barriers, systems, and prejudice that lead to these inequalities.

We are making progress. I am writing to you today and not tomorrow. We are one day closer to pay equity. But we have so much more to do.

I will continue to work to close the gender pay gap and I know you will join me in this movement.

Onward!

Jeff