Equal Pay Day

March 25, 2025, marked Equal Pay Day, the day women working full-time caught up with what their male counterparts earned the previous year. I find this sad for two reasons: 1) I didn't even know there was an Equal Pay Day, and 2) There is, in fact, an Equal Pay Day.

The pay gap between women and men is so prevalent that there is a need to acknowledge Equal Pay Day. This is why Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion is needed, to remove disparities like this.

I think about a conversation I had with my mother. It was Christmas Eve, and we were in Jersey for our traditional family Christmas Eve party.  I don't recall how the conversation turned to money, but I mentioned that I earn more money than my husband. My mother then told me, "Don't say that." "Why not?" I asked. "Cause we don't talk about it."

This is part of the problem. People have been told not to discuss money and what they earn. Especially women in relation to what men make. By not talking about it, it has allowed men to surpass women without us knowing about it until it was too late. Talking about earnings from the get-go would have alerted women to their need to ask for more money. But, that was the point of forbidding it.

​Furthermore, it doesn't help when part of the interview process involves inquiring about someone's current earnings.  This perpetually keeps women at a lower rate, as their current earnings would not be as high as those of a man. I know that some states, like Massachusetts, have removed that line of questioning, but there needs to be solutions in place to rectify what has occurred so that women can earn the same as men. 

P.S. For those naysayers out there, I am referring to earnings between a man and a woman in the same job role with the same set of skills and experience. A person in a higher role is entitled to make more money than someone in a lower role.