Black Women’s Equal Pay Day: The Issue. The Impact. | Aired Tuesday, Sept. 20, 2022

In 1960, President John F. Kennedy signed the Equal Pay Act. Sixty-two years later, women overall make 83 percent of what men do. Throughout the year, we recognize this pay disparity to draw attention to the problem.

September 21st was Black Women’s Equal Pay Day, marking the day this year that a black woman finally attains the same pay a white man made in 2021. Almost 10 months longer. At 63 cents on the dollar, Black working women are not even the most affected by this disparity. That distinction goes to Latinas, who make 55 cents on the dollar.

On September 20, the LWV of Greenville County drew attention to this injustice with a virtual conversation: Black Women’s Equal Pay Day: The Issue. The Impact.

Our two panelists were exceptionally qualified. They have both been fighters for women’s equality for decades: Rep. Chandra Dillard in the legislative arena, and Nichelle Harrison, in the workplace arena.

A few takeaways from the conversation

• We need to talk about this issue more as many, many people (even among our own cohorts) are unaware of the depth and breadth of this inequity.

• Each of us bears some responsibility for pushing our employers and other businesses we interact with to have fair and equal pay schedules.

• We are the changemakers in our communities and need to take and use that power.

• Women need to be better negotiators. This may be a topic we consider for a future event so if this is something that you have expertise in or ideas on how to approach it, please let me know.

• Don't count on our state Legislature to solve this problem, but don't let them off the hook either. Get on social media, push this information out. Write and call your legislator - just as many have for reproductive rights this summer - and let them know that this issue matters. The equal pay bill that has been introduced for the past few sessions in the state house is entitled to a hearing to bring the information forward and possibly move the needle on this issue.

Our panelists:

Rep. Dillard has represented Greenville’s District 23 in the State House for 14 years. She is the Deputy Minority Leader in the House. She currently sits on the Legislative Oversight, and Labor, Commerce and Industry committees; and is a past chair of the SC General Assembly Women’s Caucus. For the past two sessions, she has joined with a small but dedicated coalition of Black women legislators in introducing and fighting for equal pay for equal work.

Nichelle Harrison is a business owner and women’s right’s activist. Her firm - The MAP Agency – works to help qualified women relaunch careers. As she describes it: “A venture that blends her personal mission to contribute to the advancement and empowerment of women with workforce solutions for South Carolina.” She is also a member of the board of WREN (the SC Women’s Rights Empowerment Network), and a member of the AAUW, which is one of the best resources for information on gender pay inequality.