***A MESSAGE FROM THE YDA WOMEN’S CAUCUS LEADERSHIP***

Take Action on Pay Equity Day!
Tuesday, April 22, 2008

Currently, women earn 77 cents to the dollar, a narrowing of the wage gap by less than half a cent a year. Over a working lifetime, this wage disparity costs the average American woman and her family an estimated $700,000 to $2 million, impacting Social Security benefits and pensions.

In 1996, Equal Pay Day was created by the National Committee on Pay Equity (NCPE) as a way to raise awareness about the gap between men’s and women’s wages. The day, observed on a Tuesday in April, symbolizes how far into the year a woman must work, on average, to earn as much as a man earned the previous year. (Tuesday is the day on which women’s wages catch up to men’s wages from the previous week.) Because women earn less, on average, than men, they must work longer for the same among of pay. The wage gap is even greater for most women of color.

Equal pay has been the law since 1963. But today, 45 years later, women are still paid less than men—even when we have similar education, skills and experience.

Ideas for Action
Show “We’re in the Red”
On April 22, wear red to symbolize “women are in the red”.

Become informed
Read up on research, employment laws, and current legislation being introduced to close the wage gap. Click on this link: http://www.pay-equity.org/PDFs/PaycheckFairnessAct_2007.pdf

Share the benefits with our Democratic and Non-Democratic brothers
Equal pay benefits men as well! Share this fact sheet with them: http://www.aflcio.org/issues/jobseconomy/women/equalpay/FactSheetHowEqualPayHelpsMen.cfm

Raise awareness
Send a pay equity e-card to your friends, family and colleagues to help highlight the issue. Click on this link: http://www.aauw.org/postcards/payequity.cfm.

Coordinate a seminar on negotiation skills for women
Economists agree that differences in negotiating abilities can lead to pay variation among workers with similar skill sets. This would be a great women’s caucus event if you have a women’s caucus in your state!

Contact Your Senators
Let them know that you want them to support the Fair Pay Restoration Act. Information on the Act can be found here: http://www.now.org/issues/economic/070918s1843update.html.

Capitol switchboard: 202-224-3121, or find your Senators and their direct phone numbers by clicking here: http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm

To send them an email, click here: http://www.capwiz.com/now/issues/alert/?alertid=10323036#action

For More Information:

Coalition of Labor Union Women
http://www.cluw.org/programs-payequity.html

American Association of University Women
http://www.aauw.org/advocacy/issue_advocacy/actionpages/payequity.cfm

National Committee on Pay Equity
http://www.pay-equity.org/