BUSINESS AND PROFESSIONAL WOMEN OBSERVE EQUAL PAY DAY

Isle City of Alameda Business and Professional Women (BPW) will join others nationwide on Tuesday, April 25, 2006, to call attention to the wage gap in which women, on average, are paid 77 cents for every dollar paid to men. The Alameda City Council will issue a Proclamation recognizing Equal Pay Day.

April is symbolic of the point into the year that a woman must work in order to earn the wages paid to a man in the previous year. Over a working lifetime, this wage disparity costs the average American woman and her family an estimated $523,000 in lost wages. Women also often earn less than men because the more "traditional female jobs" tend to pay less. “Lower wages results in lower social security benefits, so even in retirement, women continue to "earn" less than men,” said Kimberlee Garfinkle, Isle City President.

This year Isle City BPW members are focused on sharing this information with girls throughout Alameda so they become aware of what lies ahead and, maybe, provide them the information to break the lack-of-equity cycle for their generation.

On April 25, we are encouraging people, particularly girls, to wear red, as well as consider pinning a dollar bill to her/his shirt or jacket (similar to how people pin on ribbons for various awareness causes). Women are encouraged to wear red that day to symbolize that we are "in the red" when it comes to pay equity with men. “Women and their families can no longer afford to be shortchanged,” said Jen Crook, Equal Pay Day Chair. “Isle City BPW is committed to working toward an end to the wage gap.”

To learn more about what you can do to close this wage gap, contact:

http://www.bpwusa.org