6 Ways Companies Can Honor Black Women’s Equal Pay Day
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America cannot call itself a place that is fair, just and offers equality to everyone until its financial portfolio backs that up. And as of now, we’re falling far behind. With the pandemic and the recent Roe V Wade overturn intensifying every systemic issue that was already holding Black women back, this year’s Black Women’s Equal Pay day might be the most important to date. Even before these more current accelerants to the problem, The Department of Labor’s Bearing the Cost report showed that a Black woman who works full-time for 40 years will lose nearly $1 million in wages compared to a white man.
At the intersection of a minority and a gender that have historically received the worst financial treatment, Black women experience some of the highest financial vulnerability of any group. Women’s networking and advocacy group Lean In reports that, while white women make 73 cents to every dollar a white man makes, Black women are only seeing 58 cents of that dollar. The group’s report shows other disturbing data, like the fact that this discrepancy starts as early as the teenage years and even gets worse for college-educated Black women. Several forms of systemic gender and racial equality have worked together for centuries to create this cruel reality. And on today’s Black Women’s Equal Pay Day, every company should consider it their responsibility to reflect upon their practices and do their part to close this pay gap that has gone on far too long.
Audit Salaries Semi-Annually
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For a number of reasons, including company culture and the demographic picture of a company as a whole, Black women do not always feel comfortable asking for a raise. Meanwhile, their white counterparts might feel welcomed and encouraged to do so, and over time, this is how the pay gap grows wider. Companies can take it upon themselves to conduct a semi-annual audit of salaries and look for major discrepancies between different racial and gender groups within the same role or level at the company. And then, if they see such a gap between Black women and their colleagues, fix it.
Create Supplemental Programs
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Even if there is no money to increase salaries, there might be funds to provide programs that help employees keep more of their paychecks. For example, companies with a lot of employees who are mothers could provide childcare stipends or provide on-site childcare at a greatly reduced cost compared to alternative sites. They might also arrange for large corporate discounts at major vendors like Costco or Walmart, helping those employees save on regular expenses.
Provide Financial Planning
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In addition to looking for ways to pay Black female employees more, companies can participate in their financial planning. This might look like inviting a financial planner to provide wealth management workshops at the office. If the funds are there, it could mean funding one-on-one financial planning sessions for employees and prioritizing Black female employees for these sessions.
Promote Black Women To Leadership Positions
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Making a point to promote Black women to leadership positions will help all Black women at the company on several levels. First, seeing Black women in leadership roles will empower Black female employees to feel more confident going after promotions. Second, this can provide Black female employees someone in power with whom they’re comfortable approaching about raises and promotions. Third, it instantly puts someone in a seat of power who has the best interest of Black female employees and will bring up their needs when other leaders might not.
Welcome Performance + Pay Reviews
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Today, it is common for companies to make employees feel iced out when they bring up a pay raise. In the past, giving regular, unsolicited raises to employees who had been with the company for extended periods and performed well was the norm. Today, employees – and particularly Black women – can feel they need to fight tooth and nail for small raises. If companies want to retain good talent and empower Black female employees to thrive, they should create a welcoming space to discuss pay. This can mean scheduling semi-annual performance and pay reviews, where employees can make their case for a raise to a willing and supportive supervisor.
Offer Skills Training
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Due to far too many inequities to review here, Black women are not empowered with the skills and training needed for higher-paying jobs as much as their white counterparts are. Companies can address this by providing in-house training for minority employees that would qualify them for higher-paying positions. Offering this at the workplace relieves employees of having to pay for that training elsewhere, or squeezing it into their schedules on the weekends.
