I missed Equal Pay Day a coupe weeks ago (March 12), but like many women, this day isn’t accurate for me. Wait! You’re a white cis-gender woman…how can this be???
This date roughly represents how much longer U. S. women as a whole need to work in order to receive pay equal to men. I say roughly, because it was picked to always be a Tuesday and “selected to avoid religious holidays and other significant events”, something they didn’t entirely achieve because this is the middle of Ramadan…though I digress.
In a press release from the National Committee on Pay Equity, they note, “The wage gap is even greater for most women of color.” (link to press release in comments)
But there’s so much to the unique experiences of inequity based on the intersectional identities of women. In my case, as a mom, my equal pay day isn’t until August 7, according to the 2024 AAUW Equal Pay Day Calendar (which is missing disabled women)
I went searching for equal pay day for women with disabilities and came across ithe 2017 blog post from K. Caldwell (and if others know of more updated numbers, I’d love to see them). While this isn’t the “equal pay day” these numbers can be used to calculate when during the year that would occur.
So while the idea of “Equal Pay Day” is still important to put forth a message about inequality, it’s the nuance, or disaggregated data as they’d say in research lingo, that tells the full story.
What do you think the message of “Equal Pay Day” should be and do you think it should still be in March/April?
#EqualPayDay #SystemicInequality #Disability #Intersectionality
Image Source K. Caldwell Blog Post “Equal Pay Day” http://www.kecaldwell.com/blog/equal-pay-day
