See Dick and Jane (fictional characters). Dick and Jane are the same age, earned the same college degree, have four years of work experience, are employed by the same company and hold the same jobs (same title). The only difference? Dick makes $50,000 per year and Jane makes only $39,500.
Tomorrow is Tuesday, April 12 – also known as Equal Pay Day – and it symbolizes how far into this year that Jane must work to earn the same amount that Dick earned in 2015. Her education, skills, experience and job responsibilities are the same as Dick’s, but Jane makes 79 cents for every dollar that Dick is paid. Why? Because Jane is female and Dick is male.
Did reading this story about two fictional characters make you angry? It should, because for many women, this isn’t a fictional story, it’s what they live through every day.
In the United States, women are paid approximately 79% of what men are paid. For women of color, the gap is even wider. African American women are paid, on average, 60 cents and Latinas are paid 55 cents for every dollar paid to white, non-Hispanic men.
The wage disparity analyzed on a global basis is even worse than in the U.S., with the 2015 global average, annual earnings of women only 52% of men’s. Based on the slow pace of progress towards gender economic parity, the data suggests that it could take another 118 years (until 2133) to close the global pay gap.
Now, think about your daughter, your granddaughter, your sister or even your mother. Would you want them to be paid 21% less for doing the same work as a similarly qualified male counterpart gets paid, simply because they are female?
Equal Pay Day was established as a public awareness event to illustrate the gap between men’s and women’s wages by the National Committee on Pay Equity (NCPE) in 1996. It tries to shed light on the importance of ending pay discrimination based on gender, and encouraging equal pay for equal work.
Here are ways we can all work together to reduce the gender pay gap:
Eliminate salary negotiation for entry-level and early-career type jobs. Employers could level the playing field pretty quickly, simply by introducing negotiation-free job offers, similar to when Saturn introduced negotiation-free pricing for their cars. This could work especially well for entry-level jobs.
Teach daughters how to negotiate. If employers aren’t willing to eliminate salary negotiation for entry-level jobs, it will be important for parents (especially fathers) to teach their daughters how to negotiate. Then, provide guidance and emotional support as they negotiate their salaries at the beginning of their careers.
Gender equality in the workplace isn't just good for women—it's great for business too.
Teach salary negotiation in college. Include salary negotiation training for both women and men as one of the requirements for undergraduate college degree completion. Here are eight tips to negotiate your starting salary.
Conduct employer pay equity self-audits every year. Employers should analyze wage-setting policies and establish consistent and fair pay practices as part of the HR processes. Make reviewing each job offer for potential gender discrimination issues a standard part of the HR job offer approval process.
Don’t be afraid to benchmark your pay. Before accepting a job or asking for a raise, take the time to arm yourself with salary data by conducting research online, such as through glassdoor.com, salary.com and payscale.com. Don’t be timid – ask others in similar jobs if they would be willing to share their salary information and compare backgrounds with you.
Don’t be afraid to ask for a raise. If you find out you’re making less than others in the same job, don’t keep quiet. But, get ready for the conversation with your boss by getting prepared and determining your strategy to ask for a raise.
Speak out when you see gender pay discrimination occurring or about to occur. David Schwimmer, from the cast of the television show Friends, is a good example of this. Schwimmer was considered the star of the show and his agents wanted him to negotiate a raise. Instead, he met with the other Friends actors and actresses and proposed “they all go in for a raise together, and demand equal pay.” Guess what happened? NBC agreed to their demand.
Sure, there can be differences in pay as people become more advanced in their careers due to obtaining graduate degrees or certifications, specialized training or unique skill-sets. But for entry-level jobs and positions requiring the same knowledge, skills and abilities, there shouldn’t be the level of pay disparity that currently exists between the genders when their skills sets are similar. By working together and continuing to spotlight this issue, we can take positive steps in the right direction.
Lisa Quast is the author of Secrets of a Hiring Manager Turned Career Coach: A Foolproof Guide to Getting the Job You Want. Every Time.
*Update: A previous version of this article stated that women are paid 79% less than men. It has been corrected to reflect that women are paid 21% less than men, as women are paid 79% of what men are paid.
