WORKING TOGETHER FOR FAIR PAY

Call To Action

Get The Facts

More than 40 years after Congress outlawed wage discrimination based on sex, women and people of color in the U.S. are still underpaid for the work they are doing. On average a women makes 77 cents on the dollar as compared to men. Those are dollars that don’t add up every week, making Equal Pay a family pocket book issue. Those lost earnings impact the lives of women, their families and our communities.

Equal Pay for Equal work is now an accepted concept, although we still need stronger means of enforcement. But that alone will not close the wage gap. Pay Equity – equal pay for work of comparable value – is now our challenge.

“The struggle for pay equity is part of America's evolving sense of what is fair and just. After all, slavery was once an accepted part of this democratic nation; union demands were an illegal restraint of trade; married women had no property rights; women workers had no right to their earnings; child labor was common; unequal pay for women was an accepted practice. Society took no notice when job rates dropped as women, instead of men, were hired to do them (librarians and secretaries, for example). Today, most Americans support equal pay for work of comparable (not merely identical) value. It is past time to ensure it is achieved.” National Committee for Pay Equity

• Singles: About 50% of American women live without a spouse which demolishes the myth that women need less money because they have “someone to lean on.”
• Moms: In NYC, a single mom and her preschooler needed about $39,000 to live in Brooklyn and over $60,000 to live in South Manhattan in 2004, just for a basic standard of living. But, the median income for a single mother was about $26,000. Government subsidies help fill some of the gap between income and the reality of city life. How does she choose between good childcare and necessary healthcare and healthy food?
• Professionals: Higher education isn’t protection from pay inequities, though it increases annual incomes. NY women with professional degrees earn 67% of what their male counterparts earn!
• Aging Workers: Over a working lifetime, wage disparity costs $700,000 to $2 million in lost wages, impacting families every day, but also Social Security benefits and pensions.
• Women of Color: In NYC, Latinas and Black women earn 50% and 60%, respectively, as compared to white men, who have the highest annual pay of all groups.
• Private Sector Workers: Private for-profit companies have the widest gender gap! The greatest gender parity is in the federal government where Pay Equity policies exist.

• Join The Equal Pay Coalition NYC
• April 17nd – Join Us On The Steps Of City Hall For A Rally & Hearing
• Be Part Of Equal Pay Day Campaign
• Contact Your Legislator To Support Fair Pay Laws
• Spread The Word! Reach Out To Your Network!

• Learn More About Pay Equity
• What Would Change This?
• NYS Fair Pay Act
• Federal Legislation

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