Photo: Smith House Photo for Create & Cultivate
It’s Equal Pay Day. The symbolic day dedicated to raising awareness of the gender pay gap. The day represents how far into the new year a woman must work, on average, to earn what a man earned the previous year (though for many women of color, the dates are even later in the year).
As a society, we’re making strides in rectifying this, but the stats show just how much work is left to be done. Today, we’re sharing five things you can do today to help close the pay gap for yourself and others, from sharing your struggles to creating a community committed to transparency.
1. Do your research.
First things first: The internet is your friend. Use salary comparison sites to research the average pay for your job title in your city and see where you fall in the rankings. You can also use Glassdoor’s Know Your Worth tool to receive a custom salary estimate based on your title, company, location, and experience.
2. Be transparent.
If you’re gonna talk the talk, it’s time to walk the walk. Talking about pay isn’t as scary as it sounds—you can start with your friends. Share your salaries with each other and talk about what’s fair. You can also start a wage club and consider inviting expert guest speakers who will talk with you about salary negotiations, wages, or career ladders.
3. Ask your mentor.
Do you have a mentor? If not, here’s a helpful guide to finding one. Once you’ve established a great relationship with a more experienced female mentor in your field, you can ask her for advice: How did she negotiate her first raise? How does she confirm she’s being paid fairly? What would she suggest for your particular situation? Having someone in your corner to help guide your negotiations is paramount.
4. Put out feelers.
Use social media to your advantage. Post on LinkedIn, Instagram Stories, or elsewhere asking people to talk about money with you. You’ll cultivate a great community of people who want to discuss salaries and negotiation strategies—you might even be able to form a wage club from this group of people.
5. Share this article!
The easiest way to make financial conversations less taboo is to encourage others to do so, too. Share this article and start a conversation—the wage gap may be an institutional problem, but we can help encourage each other to know our worth and fight for it.
This story was originally posted on April 2, 2019, and has since been updated.
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