Next Tuesday, April 28, is Equal Pay Day, which marks the point in 2009 when the average woman’s wages finally catch up with what the average man earned in 2008. It's an opportunity to reflect on the movement for pay equity — and the impact of unfair pay. Women still earn only 78 cents for every dollar earned by men — and for women of color, the numbers are even worse.
We're calling on supporters of fair pay for women to blog, tweet, and post to Facebook next Tuesday for Blog for Fair Pay Day 2009.
Last year, more than 80 bloggers took part in Blog for Fair Pay Day 2008, when we called on Congress to pass the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which President Obama signed in January.
Now, there's a bill pending in the Senate (and already passed by the House), the Paycheck Fairness Act, which aims to strengthen current laws against wage discrimination and require the federal government to be more proactive in preventing and battling wage discrimination. Among other things, the Paycheck Fairness Act would also close a significant loophole in the Equal Pay Act to allow for full compensation for sex-based wage discrimination.
More information on pay equity for women, the Paycheck Fairness Act, and Blog for Fair Pay Day 2009 is up on the National Women's Law Center's website. We hope you'll join us!