Equal Pay Day 2019: How To Close The Wage Gap For Good

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Equal Pay Day 2019 is Tuesday, April 2, representing the additional three months the average woman has to work into the new year just to earn what the average white man earned at the end of the previous year.

At The Female Quotient, we sensationalize the pay gap in our lounge by selling candy for $1 to men and 80 cents to women. We have also featured world clocks showing what time women can leave work depending on the pay gap in their country. For example, on average, women in America could clock out at 3:20 pm due to a 20% pay gap, while men are compensated until 5 pm.

Yet the wage gap itself isn’t created equal: While 80 cents on the dollar is the average gap for women, it varies by race and ethnicity. Here is how the gap breaks down, according to Equal Pay Today.

  • 85 cents for Asian women
  • 80 cents for white women
  • 63 cents for black women
  • 59 cents for Native American women
  • 54 cents for Latinas

The gap adds up: The average woman stands to lose $430,480 over a 40-year career , according to Equal Pay Today. And let’s not forget that 85% of consumer purchasing decisions are made by women. We’re making less and spending more. Is this fair?  If we do not close the gap, women will have less overall wealth, less money for retirement and will continue to be the ones opting out of their careers for caregiving responsibilities.

We need to shut the door on legacy issues, such as salary history and systemic bias, and open a new door for equal pay. This might cost companies a little money in the short term, but it will pay itself back over and over again in the long run in terms of employee attraction, retention and satisfaction.

The solutions are actually easy: We just have to stop talking about what we are going to do and start doing it. It’s like wearing a new pair of shoes: They might pinch at first, but the more you wear them, the more comfortable they get. Here are some ways to walk the talk.


Leadership isn’t about position or title; it’s about action. While it’s not employees’ job to close the wage gap—it is up to companies—there are moves each of us can make to be part of the solution.

Ask for it. Ask your company to pay you what others are paid at your level. Like I said, it’s not your responsibility to figure this out, it’s your company’s. When I was joining a new company and the hiring manager asked me for my salary requirements, I said I expected to get the same compensation as others at my level—not more and not less, the same. She gave me the best of everyone’s package in terms of salary, equity and vacation because I held the company accountable. What would the company have preferred: That I ask others for competitive salaries, or simply for me to expect the company to do the right thing?

Share your stories. Change won’t happen if we continue to talk amongst ourselves. Sharing our experiences and listening to the experiences of others will help drive empathy, which motivates people to act.

Be transparent about pay. If you’re a man (or a woman), sharing what you’re being paid is a step towards closing the wage gap. We need transparency in order for progress to happen. Otherwise, how will we measure where we need to go? If the company is not going to do it, we can take the responsibility to do it ourselves.


Change doesn’t happen when you sign a pledge or make a commitment; those are words.  Change happens when you have conscious leaders who walk the talk and create metrics for accountability.

Do the one-button push. We need accountability for change. Technology is our friend: Push the button to figure out where the inequity is and fix it. Starbucks has reached 100% gendered and racial pay equity in the U.S. by creating solid metrics and taking action, such as using a standards calculator to determine starting pay for roles, conducting compensation analyses and addressing any unexplained differences in pay between men and women.

Offer equal paid parental leave. This will help eliminate the motherhood penalty and normalize parenting in the workplace for both men and women.

Get more women into leadership. I believe the balance will flip when we have at least 30% women represented in leadership, and across all levels.

Amplify leaders who have an equality mindset. A giant step forward is having leadership with an equality mindset, where we’re able to put ourselves in another’s shoes. Organizations who have leaders embodying the purpose of equality will bring others along with them. You can see if a leader has an equality mindset simply by looking at his or her track record: Have they hired and promoted women? As the saying goes, actions speak louder than words. 


Supporting policies for equality will go a long way towards overcoming the pay gap. Here is some legislation to watch.

 Ban employers from asking about salary history. Basing current salary on past salary only perpetuates the wage gap, because women’s salaries will never be able to catch up. A policy trend is making it illegal for employers to ask for job candidates’ salary history, with states such as Massachusetts, Delaware, California, Oregon, Hawaii and others turning it into law, possibly paving the way for it to be adopted federally.

Protect workers who disclose their wages from retaliation. The House recently passed the Paycheck Fairness Act, which would help strengthen the Equal Pay Act of 1963, such as by removing barriers for employees to discuss their salaries with colleagues and making it easier for employees to take legal action if they believe they’re being paid unequally. For the bill to become law, it must now pass in the Senate.

Make the pay gap illegal, end of story. Iceland is the first country in the world to make the gender pay gap illegal, with a law requiring companies with 25 or more employees to prove that they pay men and women equal for equal work.

There is no such thing as trying; you either do it, or you don’t. It’s time to close the wage gap for good. Just imagine what we could do with at least 20% more in our pockets! What would you do? Please share your thoughts with me @shelleyzalis.

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