Letter: Seeing red for women's equal pay
On behalf of the Schaumburg Area Branch of the American Association of University Women, I want you to know that "All Women's Equal Pay Day" is March 15. Sadly it is not a day to celebrate even if it falls in Women's History Month.
Women's Equal Pay Day is the date to denote how long into the new year women must work to be paid what men were paid the previous year. Started by the National Committee on Pay Equity in 1996, the goal was to raise awareness about the gender wage gap.
Working women and particularly women of color have been devastated by the pandemic. They have lost their jobs at a greater rate than men and have shouldered a greater portion of child care and eldercare responsibilities in the workforce. Our society cannot afford to leave women behind. When women win, their families, communities and workplaces win too.
The recent, but long overdue, establishment of equal pay for soccer's U.S. Women's National Team stands as a signature victory for gender equality in sports. However, there is more work to be done. Wear RED on Equal Pay Day March 15, 2022 to symbolize how far women and minorities are "in the red" with their pay.
Peg Gallagher
Arlington Heights