April 4th is Equal Pay Day—though it is just the start of a six month stretch when different groups of women begin to match their male counterparts on a weekly pay basis. We want to help you make the time count towards your future. For Asian women Equal Pay Day arrives March 15th; for Black Women August 23rd; Native American women September 14th; and Latinas must wait until November 1st.
That’s why I’ve taken to calling it #EqualAskDay to encourage women to use the resources at hand--my leadership Power Tool #3 is “Use what you’ve got” after all. We put together this list of resources to help you use what you’ve got--your voice and your intention--to accelerate the movement for equal pay for yourself and all women.
For Equal Pay/Equal Ask Day, Join In:
POWHer NY: In New York City on April 4, consider joining the rally POWHer NY is holding with partners on the steps of City Hall,.
Not in New York that day? Go here and you can download their helpful toolkit and calendar
MakeItWork, sign a petition, get involved.
Join POWHer NY and SheNegotiates in a free webinar at noon to ET they are calling Career Oxygen: Equal Pay Day Edition 2017 5 Key Actions for Closing Your Wage Gap
Use your wallet and join LeanIn for their #20PercentCounts—“ For Equal Pay Day (April 4), we’re offering 20% discounts or special offers in partnership with LUNA, Lyft, P&G, and hundreds of businesses across the country to highlight the unfairness of the gender pay gap.”
Join us on Twitter with #EqualAskDay and tell us what you are doing to make a difference this year.
Stay informed:
Womens ENews is a nonprofit news organization and one to add to your rotation of reads every week. Editor Lori Sokol brings stories from all over the world affecting women and girls.
Feminist.com has been in business for two decades and Marianne Schnall is a journalist whose interviews have put her in front of all kinds of subjects from Amy Poehler to women you’ve never heard of and won’t forget.
Garnet News, edited by Janet Harrison, is “Today’s News Powered by Women,” and offers news plus a newsletter.
Catalyst has been a leader in key research—dive in and you’ll get a broader picture of the marketplace’s trends and issues.
Sign up for Take The Lead’s The Movement Newsletter. Edited by award-winning journalist Michele Weldon, it hits your inbox every Tuesday with a mix of articles, videos, Gloria’s pick of the week, and on Action of The Week.
And ask your friends for the women journalists, podcasters, bloggers and more who are digging in to get stories not always covered elsewhere—let us know your favorites over on our Facebook page.
Know Your Worth:
Check out these resources and learn what you are worth and how to make sure you are getting what is fair:
Start With Take The Lead’s Close The Gap App—today free with code free2day
Head over to SheNegotiates, for more insights and strategies.
PayScale: Great way to check if you are paying your staff enough--and if you are getting what you should! Also, over at Take The Lead on April 12, Lydia Frank from PayScale will be one of our guests on our Virtual Happy Hour!
Also check out Money Zen and Daily Worth,
And plan on becoming a fan of this podcast, So Money: An insightful podcast by Farnoosh Torabi, who you might recognize from CNBC, who interviews a wide range of experts on money, life, careers and happiness.
Plot Your Future:
Fairygodboss is a wonderful place to start with job listings, company reviews by women who’ve worked there, and original research, it’s a good place to start planning your next step. And a special bonus--on Equal Pay Day Fairygodboss and PayScale have teamed up so you can use a PayScale calculator to estimate what you should be making and how you stack up.
There are lots of job seeking sites but ZipRecruiter is another one that stands out. Their research on how key words changed who applied is critical feedback for companies who want inclusion but are sending unconscious messages to the contrary.
We all know that having a mentor can make a big difference in your career--but finding one, and a woman to boot, is no easy task. The software company Glassbreakers has created a program and teamed up with Take The Lead. To make it easy, sign up here: Take The Lead
Long term planning:
Make a commitment to your own future and go big. Take the course, develop new skills, consider a run for office, for a seat on a local board and check out these places to start you thinking:
Equal Pay Day is April 4th but all of April is Financial Literacy Month and Take The Lead is kicking it off on April 12 with our signature monthly Virtual Happy Hour, this time with two financial whizzes: Farnoosh Torabi whose podcast “So Money” is a must listen and who also appears on CNBC. Joining Farnoosh is Lydia Frank, VP of Content Strategy over at PayScale. These are free monthly get-togethers you can join easily from your laptop at home, your favorite drink in hand. Register now! We sponsor these the second Wednesday every month--plan on becoming one of our regulars--we’ll save you a seat! And check out our YouTube Channel for past month’s conversations.
Look at conferences and classes for inspiration and networking:
SheSummit, hosts theirs every October and their website offers a rich menu for year round thinking.
Watermark Conferences take place on the West Coast and in February. The lineup showcases top thinkers and doers.
Organizations to call home: join a group where you can meet other women, be inspired by their stories and find solutions for your own career.
Ellevate, power businesswoman Sallie Krawcheck’s organization hosts local coffee meet ups and more. This year they are launching their first ever conference in June.
And check out the courses Take The Lead offers for individuals and organizations seeking to amp up their diversity and inclusion and build the pipeline of women in leadership.
Bring us to your company or organization by contacting us here: https://www.taketheleadwomen.com/contact/
Please share this information far and wide. Connect with Take The Lead on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn to continue sharing information and encouragement so that women will ASK on Equal Pay/Equal Ask Day. Together we can make #EqualAskDay one day where we actually can celebrate equal pay.
