#EqualWorkEqualPay Newsletter (06.03.20)
In the midst of both the global COVID-19 pandemic and the eruption of Black Lives Matter protests across the country, it's natural to wish for a return to "normal"...but unfortunately, our former "normal" was both unequal and unjust.
One of the most glaring of structural inequalities that exists in the United States and globally is the wage gap. In the United States, despite laws intended to prevent wage discrimination, women still earn ~20% less than men on average - and for women of color, it's much lower. It takes the typical Black woman 19 months to be paid what the average non-Hispanic White man takes home in 12 months. In the workplace, women of color are paid at least 21% less than White women, and 1 in 3 Americans are unaware of this pay gap.
Beyond hourly and annual wages, Black-owned businesses have struggled significantly during the pandemic. Because of discriminatory government policies, Black businesses were less likely to receive COVID relief loans. This has prevented many of these small businesses from acquiring the finances to keep business—and revenue—flowing. This is unacceptable.
The achievement of equal pay is not about passing a law, conducting a technical pay gap analysis, or any other one-time fix. It is a continuous systemic, structural, and cultural endeavor that requires full re-evaluation. How is talent valued? How are roles valued? What professional attributes and skills are sought out for roles? How do you recruit for roles? What business standards do you hold your partners, contractors, and subcontractors to? These decisions are often made by leaders, and can be tacitly reinforced by colleagues and team members through inaction and silence. If we want to build back better, inaction and silence are no longer options.
We have to identify all of our structural and individual biases, unravel them, and actively replace them. Here are some questions to ask and begin to take action around:
Does your company or organization regularly conduct pay practices analysis?
If yes, what are the results, and if necessary, what corrective actions are taken?
If no, why not?
What is your company doing to ensure that people of color, especially women of color, are supported and sponsored in their professional career? (Research shows that women of color receive less support from their managers.)
If your company or organization hires contractors - for example, for cleaning and maintenance services - what criteria is in place to ensure that the contracted staff are paid a living wage? (If your company/organization rents office space in a managed building, this inquiry applies for contractor services provided by the building management.)
This non-exhaustive list is simply a starting point for asking the questions that may not have been asked before. We encourage you to start with curiosity, and think outside the box. Why are things set up the way they are? What must we do differently? What is your personal role in this work?
We can no longer afford to accept things as they are. Ensuring structural, cultural, and individual change around something as critical as #EqualWorkEqualPay requires us to re-evaluate, re-examine, re-think, and re-imagine everything.
As we begin to restore and build back better, it is up to every single one of us to shift our social, cultural, political, and economic structures to benefit not some, but all.