Yesterday – nine months into the year – was #NativeWomensEqualPayDay.  This means that Native American women had to work until September 8, 2021, to earn what their white, non-Hispanic male colleagues earned on average in 2020—that is 60 cents for every dollar.  This equates to more than $24,000 per year and $1 million over a 40-year career.  

To the extent that the pandemic forced Native American women to leave work to manage caregiving and household responsibilities, the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic are sure to have exacerbated the crisis, and the full impact is yet to be known. 

Action is needed to close the pay gap.  What can we do?  Right now, we can advocate for equal pay laws, minimum wage increases, the expansion of high-quality and affordable childcare, and paid family and medical leave for all parents regardless of gender.¹ The United States ranks last in government-mandated paid leave for new parents, which has been identified as a key reason for the U.S. decline in competitiveness.²  We can also continue to advocate for reproductive choice.³ Lawyers Club continues to be on the forefront of the reform efforts for these and other issues affecting women’s rights and well-being.  To learn more, join us on September 23, 2021 for a virtual MCLE, presented by the Diverse Women’s Committee, on the intersection of race and gender discrimination and its impact on reproductive justice and family unity for California’s most vulnerable, including those in prison.

[1] National Women’s Law Center, https://nwlc.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Native-Women-Equal-Pay-2021.pdf

[2] https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/12/16/u-s-lacks-mandated-paid-parental-leave/; https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/hr-topics/benefits/pages/how-bidens-paid-fmla-proposal-would-work.aspx.

[3] Bailey MJ, Hershbein B, Miller AR. The Opt-In Revolution? Contraception and the Gender Gap in Wages. Am Econ J Appl Econ. 2012;4(3):225-254. doi:10.1257/app.4.3.225