Have You Taken the Pay Equality Pledge? - Glassdoor for Employers
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Have You Taken the Pay Equality Pledge?

Equal Pay Day is on Tuesday, April 2nd. This date symbolizes how far into the year women must work to earn what men earned in the previous year.

According to new Glassdoor Economic Research report, Progress on the Gender Pay Gap: 2019, reveals that although significant pay gaps remain between men and women, the pay gap has narrowed slightly in the U.S., UK, France and Australia, showing improvement since Glassdoor’s 2016 study.

Today, the unadjusted pay gap between men and women in the U.S. is 21.4 percent, meaning women earn, on average, $0.79 for every $1.00 men earn. This represents a 2.7 percentage point shrink in the unadjusted pay gap from three years ago, when women earned, on average, $0.76 for every $1.00 men earn.

9 in 10 employees from around the globe believe men and women should be paid equally for equal work and experience. If you #StandForEqualPay, take the pledge today to tell the world that you promote equal pay for equal work.

pay equality pledge

A Refresher on The Gender Pay Gap

Today, the unadjusted pay gap between men and women in the U.S. is 21.4 percent, meaning women earn, on average, $0.79 for every $1.00 men earn. This represents a 2.7 percentage point shrink in the unadjusted pay gap from three years ago, when women earned, on average, $0.76 for every $1.00 men earn. When statistical controls are applied for worker and job characteristics, including worker age, education, years of experience, occupation, industry, location, year, company and job title, the pay gap in the U.S. today is 4.9 percent, revealing the adjusted pay gap. This is down one half of one percentage point from the 2016 adjusted pay gap (5.4 percent).

Taking Steps Toward Equal Pay

Understanding causes of the gender pay gap is the key to achieving pay equity going forward. Although the “smoking gun” of overt workplace bias was the main driver of gender pay inequity in the early 1960s, today the main causes are subtler. The data show that outright discrimination isn’t likely the main driver of today’s overall gender pay gap. Instead, it’s mostly due to occupation and industry sorting of men and women into systematically different jobs. But even after those factors are accounted for, the remaining 5.4 percent “adjusted” gender pay gap in the U.S. is a significant workplace problem all Americans should be concerned about.

What policies can best address the remaining gender pay gap? One solution may be promoting greater pay transparency in the workplace—something new rules recently proposed by the White House aim to accomplish. Plus, other third-party research clearly shows that embracing salary transparency can help eliminate hard-to-justify gender pay gaps in the workplace. Without access to pay data for specific job titles at specific companies, it’s easy to understand how gender inequities could persist for years undetected on employer payrolls.

As America strives toward gender equality in the workplace, pay transparency can play an important role in helping traverse the last mile toward full equality in male-female earnings in the workplace.

How Employers Can #StandForEqualPay

1. Conduct a gender pay gap analysis.

Gather your data and enlist an analyst to take a look at your salary and bonus data by gender, department, tenure, age, education, and location.

2. Pledge your commitment.

Show candidates your commitment by taking the Equal Pay Pledge on Glassdoor. Demonstrate your commitment to equal pay by sharing the results of your study with employees and celebrating any adjustments made.

3. Make equitable offers.

Since research shows that women and older workers are less likely to negotiate, leave less room for negotiation in your offers. Evaluate pay scales at least annually to become more transparent in your approach to pay.

4. Equalize performance reviews.

Performance reviews, promotions, and bonus distributions can be affected by unconscious bias relating to behavioral traits, favoritism, and male-based definitions of success. Provide manager training and controls to ensure women and men are being evaluated fairly.

5. Start the conversation.

Encourage employees to use their voice by posting reviews and salaries on Glassdoor.com