Equal pay for equal work. It’s only fair.
Posted by michellemoquin on May 14th, 2008
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=17x235VynTY&hl=en]
A friend of mine who just had her baby forwarded me this letter that was written a few weeks ago. I thought it was very appropriate considering the hot topics these past few months have been: white men, the presidential election, and our rights. Well ladies, the glass ceiling has risen again…the fight for equal rights continues…
“This article which made me think the calendar had been switched back 50 years while I was sleeping. Yesterday, the Senate failed to pass the Fair Pay Act. What was almost worse than that defeat were the out-of-touch, misinformed — and downright insulting — statements about women.”
“Senator John McCain (R-AZ), who didn’t even come to vote, said that instead of legislation allowing them to demand equal pay, women simply need ‘education and training.’ Fox News: ‘Not only is his information wrong — women are currently paid less for the same work, even though they have the same education and training — he’s also sending a message to our nation, to our sons and daughters, that this pay gap is okay, and it’s women’s fault for being paid less. Not so!”
And we want this man running our country? My friend encouraged me to check out the website, Momsrising.org. Even though I am not a mom, I am a woman, and this applies to me as well. Plus I am a huge supporter of women, and of course this includes all of the moms out there too.
“MomsRising.org is working to build a massive grassroots movement big enough to impact the outcome of the 2008 elections and beyond. The time has come to break the logjam that’s been holding back family-friendly legislation for decades. It’s going to take all of us–and then some–working together to get there.”
“MomsRising gives mothers, and all who have mothers, a voice in shaping the laws & policies that affect our lives. You can sign online petitions on timely issues like healthcare, flexible work options, paid family leave, childcare, living wages, and more, or you can just sign up to receive email alerts, all for free.”
When you sign the petition, send your resume as well to show Senator McCain just how qualified you really are. I signed and sent mine. When you sign the petition, you’ll join the many other women and mothers in telling Congress: “We Need Equal Pay for Equal Work — it is good law, make it enforceable again.”
Here’s a few interesting stats. ZL: You are about to go back into the work force, this should interest you quite a bit.
- Women now make up 58% of college graduates and nearly half of the labor force, but still earn less pay for the same work as men. Worse yet, mothers only make 73 cents to a man’s dollar, for the exact same job. College graduate, high school graduate, law school diploma, nursing degree, whatever your training; women should make equal pay for equal work.
- The wage gap between mothers and non-mothers is greater than between women and men—and it’s actually getting bigger. Non-mothers earn 10 percent less than their male counterparts; mothers earn 27 percent less; and single mothers earn between 34 percent and 44 percent less. The wage gap is a direct reflection of bias against working mothers. This bias, in part, is because we don’t have family friendly policies to support the needs of working mothers and families like flexible work options, paid family leave, and accessible childcare.
Senator McCain’s statement is a sad testament to the fact that many leaders are out of touch with the realities of working women today. Maybe as a Senator with only 16 women colleagues, he’s simply out of touch with the reality that America has a broad and deep pool of highly qualified, trained, and utterly capable women. Let’s remind him of that fact.
Sign the petition for Fair Pay, add your resume and/or comments, forward this email around to friends, and help us change this country, one leader at a time! Thank you!
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Hi Daphne: Come by anytime you want! The sale went great but I still have many left that are in your size. I found one ‘pretty in pink’ style in the color pink yesterday – the Oscar goodie bag pajama -the last one and in your size! I think it would be fab on you! And I just discovered a few boxes of silk pjs from Vietnam that are beautiful, also the same style. I’m going to sell them very reasonably too! Bring some girlfriends if you want. Just call me first.
Hey ZL: I don’t have too many left in your size but I do have one pj that I think would be great on you. The blue is beautiful and it is trimmed in a soft yellow with pretty matching ribbon trim – the same “fit & flare” style as your fav but in summer cotton. I know you like the deep rich colors but this combo with your skin and hair coloring, you would be the bomb! It is from the ‘Pamper me’ group. :) We all need a little pampering don’t we?! I’ll photo it and post it tomorrow.
How’s the house looking? You go live this Thursday yes? We get lots of ‘oohs and aahhs’ from everyone – they are all quite surprised when they see the fantastic work but so far we still own it :)
Hi Howie – Thank you!
Hellooo Readers: Y’all have a good one!
Gratefully your blog host,
michelle ?
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May 14th, 2008 at 1:12 pm
Hi Michelle, hot topic…as usual : )
I once wrote in my blog about an article I’d read about women not negotiating their pay very well; some women were pissed off at my commentary, some indicated that they think they might’ve left money on the table.
Generally speaking though, all of the above you wrote is so true. However, women of poverty/low income levels should get funded for education and training so they can earn higher dollars, it’s a self perpetuating cycle right now. This very issue was my latest adjunct opinion to the upping the ante on the domestic violence shelter I work with, we need to now get the women vocational/college educations so they can make real money, not just subsist without Mr. Rock-em’-sock-em’ out of their lives. Yes, they celebrate that living without violence is better, but only for a minute but then reality is they work and try to feed/clothe and educate 2-3 kids on minimum wage jobs, it cannot be done.
Even with legislation, there is a hidden motivation, in Sg it was open, employers don’t want, really and truly, to accommodate mothers, they don’t want to spend money on training and education, etc…only to promote them and have them leave either temporarily or permanently.
Most leave permanently bc there is no release from the constant pressure to do more, spend more hours, etc…men are treated differently in this regard historically and kids do rely on moms more, it is what it is. I don’t know the answer to that conundrum unless men would like to step up and comment/get active. Dudes, any suggestions?
Can’t wait to see the pj’s, catch you tomorrow, ZL
May 14th, 2008 at 10:53 pm
I was doing a bit of reflection today…a bit of my day in the life…
I watched the principles of ammonia and heat working in tandem to create beauty through color, and I watched two long legged centipede types battle for survival, in our garden, using our artichoke plant as a platform, as I watered during record high temps. I thought of how our dog, Lucy, is able to speak to Michelle and myself in ways most humans would not understand, yet, for those of us that pay attention to the moments of our pets, we do. I reflected on how the survival of particles or atoms at record low temperatures struggled for life while scientists, through Kelvin, Dewar, Thompson, Einstein, and on tried to find the roots of absolute zero, I pondered the principles of heat, time, and grapes while I enjoyed some wine (with a flying saucer on the label)…I thought of how insignificant our lives can be to the broad universal picture.
Why is it that we have different human beings, running their lives as they see fit for themselves and their families, and they feel (we hope) for the betterment of our society, being labeled and ostraciszed due to their race, age or sex. There will come a day in which the human race will find a means of coming together for survival. It will reach a point to which survival will become a pivotal point in the stability and longevity of our capacity to maintain ourselves as a species. No race, no sex, no age will be a factor in this equation. Am I right Gleia?
There comes a time:
Oh, this old world
keeps spinning round
It’s a wonder tall trees
ain’t layin’ down
There comes a time.
Perhaps people need to reach a point of no return in order to find answers. Perhaps through the principles of choas or quantum theory will we find the answers to the questions that keep us as a species apart from eachother in order to come as one and move forward together in harmony. The basis of chaos in order to reach absolute harmony…
There is no reason for the chaotic answers we seek in todays blog excepting uneducated reactions as a society to answers as a societal consciousness that we seek. What I mean by this is that, by society as a whole, whether we be male/female, black/white/red/yellow, aged or newborn we are all the same excepting our evolution of the ego. As a societal ego we simply need to find a harmonic approach in order to create a more perfect union. Without the ego, without the greed, without the past (luggage) will we find a place to which any human, any race, any sex, or age, or any entity of life will we be able to find a means to resonate with all of the other beings on this planet in order to create a habitable place in which we can all survive in harmony.
Can it exist? Does it exist…oh, yes, Sweteno. We have a precident.
We find something to strive for…something attainable…
“tomorrow is another day…”
May 15th, 2008 at 3:53 am
the best ive read yet on this site…
August 5th, 2008 at 10:10 pm
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C.Apana