Labor notes: Get involved in ‘Equal Pay Day’ on April 15

On Tuesday, April 15, women across this country won’t just be thinking about paying their taxes, but about getting paid fairly for the work they do.

April 15 is Equal Pay Day, a national, community-based public awareness event held each year through the United States. Sponsored by the National Committee on Pay Equity (NCPE) — a coalition of major civil rights organizations, women’s groups, trade associations and labor unions — Equal Pay Day involves thousands of local advocates in programs and activities focused on stomping out wage discrimination against women and people of color.

Equal Pay Day 2003 materials can be found at the NCPE Web site at www.feminist.com/fairpay/epd.htm. The kit includes information on the Equal Pay Act of 1963, a wage-gap map, a sample letter to the editor, a sample news advisory and an equal-pay proclamation.

NCPE selects a Tuesday for its annual event because that day is symbolic of the point into the new week that a woman must work in order to earn wages paid to a man in the previous week.

According to the report “Highlights of Women’s Earnings 2001,” released in May 2002 and based on data from the Current Populations Survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau, women in 2001 earned 76 cents for every dollar earned by a man.

Since the Equal Pay Act was signed in 1963, the real median earnings of women have fallen short by a total of $497,319. That means women earn approximately $13,087 less each year than the average man does.

“Women, in general, and union women, in particular, should care about this issue, which has a great impact on families,” said UUP Executive Board member Lorna Arrington of SUNY Buffalo, a member of the national Coalition of Labor Union Women. “It’s important for us to come together and raise people’s awareness.”

— Karen L. Mattison