Panel by women, for women
Equal Pay Day is a national event that takes place every April 12. Statistically, a woman would have to work three months and 12 days more than a man to make the same annual amount.
I never had to worry about pay discrimination in my three, part-time, $8-an-hour jobs. When I got to the event, I noticed that the audience consisted of more than just students—there were women of retiring age who still feel the impact of this issue.
After the introduction, Alejandra Edwards, an Economics professor here at CSULB, relayed a brief history of women in the work place and gender discrimination. She then went on to stress the importance of networking among women. Sometimes facing the monumental effort needed to draw even with their male coworkers, women forget to work not just toward equality, but toward advancement. Carlynne McDonnell, an organizational consultant, spoke to the audience next. McDonnell informed the audience about the lawsuits that have taken place because of gender discrimination, such as Dukes v. Wal-Mart, which involved women across the nation who have worked at Wal-Mart and experienced unequal pay, fewer promotion opportunities, and hostile work environments. Pat Lynch, a former professor here and at Cal Poly, and a current business owner, concluded the panel. Lynch urged her audience to negotiate when a salary is offered by a potential employer. Most women are likely to just accept the first offer on the table, so Lynch provided us with a handout of her top ten tips for negotiating a salary.
But perhaps the most immediate concern presented was in regards to the Paycheck Fairness Act, which would not put an end to the problems of equal pay, but it would update the 48-year-old fair pay laws to address issues such as closing the loopholes that were used against the women in the Dukes v. Wal-Mart case. This act went through the Senate last year, but despite the support of the majority it did not pass. The bill will be re-introduced this week, and the members of the American Association of University Women urge students to show their support for a bill that will help put an end to this battle.
After all, some of the women in that room have fought this war their entire lives. I definitely don’t want to continue to fight it for the rest of my life. As I left, the words of the panel’s moderator, Gerrie Schipske, rang through my head, “Equal pay for equal work is not a radical concept!”
