On #EqualPayDay 2016, Progress Iowa calls on lawmakers to make equal pay a priority and increase salary transparency in the workplace.
Hardworking women across Iowa and the entire country deserve equal pay for equal work. Wages have flatlined for nearly the last 40 years, with public policy stuck in a 1950s mentality, resulting in an entire generation of workers getting more productive without getting a raise. Stagnant wages are even more problematic for women, who earn 79 cents for every dollar a man makes in America (it’s even worse for African American women and Latinas). In Iowa, the gap is even wider, at 77 cents on the dollar for women. And it’s not just an issue for women; in almost 72% of Iowa families, women are the primary or co-breadwinner. When women aren’t paid fair wages, families suffer the consequences.
“It is reprehensible and unacceptable that in the year 2016, women across the country continue to fight for equal pay. This is truly a no-brainer. It’s time to make equal pay a top priority in Iowa and across the nation”, said Matt Sinovic, Progress Iowa Executive Director. “In order to guarantee equal opportunities for future generations, we must act now and demand working women receive the wages they deserve. This is not a gender-specific issue. An investment in working women is an investment in working families. The pay gap is largest for women with advanced degrees. Pay should be based on education, experience and skill, not gender. We can do better. We should be ashamed as a nation, and it is past time to make equal pay one of our number one priorities.”
Progress Iowa is a nonpartisan multi-issue advocacy organization with a network of nearly 70,000. Year-round, Progress Iowa advocates for a stronger middle class, first-class public education, and fairness for all Iowans under the law. For more information, visit progressiowa.org.
Originally published at progressiowa.org.
