CALL TO ACTION ON PAY EQUITY

WHAT YOU CAN DO

ACTION ALERTS

Participants include:

• 9 To 5
• A Better Balance
• AAUW - Manhattan Branch
• AAUW - NYC Branch
• A Better Balance
• Catalyst
• The Center for the Women of New York
• CUNY - Howard Samuels Center. Junior League of the City of New York
• League of Professional Theatre Women – NY
• Manhattan Chamber of Commerce-Women’s Business Committee
• NOW-NYC
• NAFE
• NAWBO - NYC
• NY Coalition of 100 Black Women
• NYC Coalition of Professional Women in the Arts and Media
• NYSPEC/NYS Pay Equity Coalition
• NOW-NYC
• NWYA
• Roundtable of Food Professionals-NYC
• WID - NY
• Women in Health Management
• Women on the Job
• Women's City Club of New York.
• Women’s Center for Education & Career Advancement
• Authors Ellen Bravo, Deb Condren, Barbara Ehrenriech.

2008 EQUAL PAY NYC: RALLY & HEARING NYWA's Equal Pay Coalition NYC rallied in force outside City Hall on April 17th and called for the passage of resolutions in favor of the NYS Fair Pay Act and comparable federal legislation. Moving inside, leaders and experts offered testimony in Council Chambers at a hearing sponsored by Councilwoman Helen Sears, Chair of the Women's Issues Committee and resolution sponsor.

Dressed in red in recognition of Equal Pay Day - and seeing red becauseof the recent NYS Senate tactics to derail the passage of a comprehensive Pay Equity law - advocates demanded that NYS remedy this continuing economic discrimination. While the bill languishes in Albany, we will urge the City Council to take action by passing local pay equity measures. Our continuing efforts to work with the City Council are even more urgent because the US Senate recently failed to pass the Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, leavingwomen more vulnerable to pay inequities.

This second Equal Pay Day celebration was bigger and better than last year's and brought together 25+ leading women's organizations to speak loudly in one voice for pay equity. Special thanks from NYWA GovernmentAffairs Co-chairs Joan D. Firestone and Beverly Neufeld to all who attended, sent emails, made calls, testified and made the day a great success! Press coverage included: Village Voice, WBAI, WNYC, and Huffington Post. Click to see pictures!

• JOIN OUR EQUAL PAY CAMPAIGN – See the Action Alert below
• Start a WAGE CLUB WAGE Project These clubs were created to empower women and increase awareness of pay equity issues throughout the year. A WAGE club allows a small group of women to meet regularly and have a series of discussions and strategy sessions to discuss money, negotiations skills and what to do if they are being paid unfairly.
• SPREAD THE WORD! REACH OUT TO YOUR NETWORK! CLICK TO SEND TO A FRIEND
• CONDUCT A WORKPLACE PAY AUDIT: http://www.bpwusa.org/files/public/epaudit.pdf

• CONTACT YOUR CITY COUNCIL MEMBER - Ask her/him to support the Resolutions that call for the New York State Legislature to pass, and the Governor to sign, the NYS and Federal Pay Equity legislation. Resolution numbers: 896 and 1152. Passage would be a clear statement to NY State and to Congress that when it comes to Pay Equity….NYC means business! Also ask for NYCity Pay Equity Measures.
  
  To find your council members contact information:
  http://www.council.nyc.gov/html/members/members.shtml
  
  
• HELP PASS THE FEDERAL FAIR PAY RESTORATION ACT which will reverse the Supreme Court Ledbetter decision and help ensure that people suffering pay discrimination can assert their rights under federal anti-discrimination laws. Go to the National Women’s Law Center campaign www.nwlc.org

For more information or to be part of NYWA’s Pay Equity project, contact:
Government Affairs Committee Co-chairs Joan D. Firestone and Beverly Neufeld

- Back To Working Together For Fair Pay