Black women in New York lose $26,547 a year and $986,800 over a lifetime in wages due to the wage gap. This is much more than the average woman who loses $350,360 over a lifetime. To mark Black Women’s Equal Pay Day on August 21, 2021 we highlighted the importance of closing this gap and fighting for more comprehensive equal pay measures, like Salary Range Transparency, with our virtual rally featuring electeds, leaders and advocates.
Watch all the statements in this playlist or linked below.
- NYS Attorney General Letitia James
- NYS Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie
- NYS Senator John Mannion
- NYS Senator Shelley Mayer
- NYS Assemblymember Judy Griffin
- NYS Assemblymember Jessica Gonzalez Rojas
- NYS Assemblymember Rebecca Seawright
- NYS Assemblymember JoAnne Simon
- Karen L. King, PhD., Erie County Commission on the Status of Women
- Na’ilah Amaru, Human Services Council of New York
- Janice Brown, AAUW-NYS
- Carol Baldwin Moody, Legal Momentum
- Debipriya Chatterjee, Community Service Society
- Rebecca Damon, SAG-AFTRA
- Carol Jenkins, ERA Coalition
- The National Federation of Business & Professional Women’s Clubs-NYC
This year felt extra celebratory as the NYC Council called for comprehensive measures to end this wage and opportunity inequality in response to released data on the NYC workforce. The data revealed widespread gender and racial wage disparities and was required by a 2018 law that PowHerNY was proud to fight for with CWA Local 1180.
Watch their press conference below:
The fact that Black Women’s Equal Pay Day is months after the day that marks what the average wage gap for women is, makes it that much more important to draw awareness to. Unfortunately, this is also not the last one of the year, in the fall we will also rally for Native Women and Latina Equal Pay Days, for they are the groups impacted by the largest gaps, and need our collective PowHer the most.