Public Employee Press: PEP Talk
COVID puts equal pay for equal work at risk
The labor movement continues its fight for pay equity, equal pay for equal work, and demands that as breadwinners and heads of household, women earn the same wage for the same work as their male counterparts.
“When women do well and earn better wages, equal wages, we see families do better. There are more households headed by women than ever before,” said DC 37 Women’s Committee Chair Carmen Charles, president of NYC Hospitals Employees Local 420. “Their earnings impact their wallets and ability to provide for themselves and their children now and into retirement.”
But the coronavirus can put women’s wage gains at risk. Two dynamics simultaneously pose potential threats to pay equity for women in 2020: President Donald Trump and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Three years ago, Trump rolled back the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act. It was the first law that President Barack Obama signed in 2009. It strengthened the 1963 Equal Pay Act.
Second, the coronavirus pandemic has created severe economic downturns around the globe that have hit women’s purses hardest, according to McKinsey.com, which reported that women’s jobs are 1.8 times more vulnerable to this crisis than men’s jobs. While women make up 39% of global employment, they account for 54% of overall job losses incurred during the pandemic.
COVID-19 increases the burden of unpaid care, which falls squarely on women’s shoulders. Whether caring for sick spouses or ailing parents, and balancing schooling children at home in virtual classrooms and childcare with work demands, women are more critically affected by the fallout.
Experts conclude that the pandemic and subsequent economic crises may adversely impact women’s future earnings. Equal Pay Day statistics reveal that as some of the lowest paid in America’s workforce, Latinas, who earn on average 54 cents on the dollar, must work until Nov. 2, of this year to earn what their white male counterparts earned in 2019.
On the whole, American working women earn about 82 cents for every dollar paid to white men. Asian-American women earn 90 cents and Black women earn 62 cents for every dollar a white male coworker in the same title earns.
McKinsey.com noted, if no immediate action is taken to improve pay equity for women, by 2030 the global economy will stand to lose $1 trillion. But “actions taken to advance gender equality could be valuable, adding $13 trillion to global GDP (Gross Domestic Product) in 2030.”
A comprehensive review of women’s wages shows that union membership is the primary way women can ensure equal access to opportunities, job security, and higher salaries.
DC 37 has initiated steps to remedy pay equity and protect women’s paychecks. At a 2018 City Hall press conference with DC 37 and women’s rights advocates, then-New York City Public Advocate Letitia James revealed a study that uncovered the “average salary of women at the top 10 majority women city agencies is $10,000 less than the average salary of men…suggesting that NYC may value certain kinds of work over others.”
To address the city’s gender-based pay issue, DC 37 established a Pay Equity Panel where labor leaders worked with lawmakers to craft equal pay legislation. DC 37 negotiated with the city in 2019 to add more than $12 million to the city contract to address the specific salary disparities James’ report revealed.
