Today is Black Women’s Equal Pay Day, which marks the number of additional days in 2018 that Black women on average must work to make what their white male counterparts earned in 2017. In California, Black women working year-round and full-time are paid on average 63 cents for every dollar paid to white, non-Hispanic men, which means Black women must work seven additional months to make up their wage disparity.

The California Women’s Law Center recognizes the importance of Equal Pay Days to raise awareness about the gender wage gap, an issue that continues to threaten the economic security of all women. The persistence of pay disparity among men and women has a multitude of causes, including employment discrimination, gender and race-based bias, lack of pay transparency, insufficient minimum wage levels, unfair workplace practices, lack of affordable child care, an unequal public education system, dismantling of organized labor, and inadequate access to capital.

CWLC is dedicated to the fight to end practices contributing to the gender wage gap, which continues to leave far too many women and their families living in poverty.