How Portland can reduce the wage gap between women and men

By Portland City Commissioner Dan Saltzman.

Today is Equal Pay Day. That's the day each year when American women finally earn what their male counterparts earned during the prior year. This year, it took women a shocking three months and eight days to catch up. That's because women across our country earn, on average, 77 cents for every dollar earned by men for equivalent work. This gap is wider for women of color: African-American women are paid 64 cents and Latinas 55 cents for every dollar paid to white, non-Hispanic men.

There are many reasons why pay gaps exist -- and persist. One piece of the gap can be explained by how we undervalue work that is traditionally done by women -- even when it is comparable to higher paying work done by men. Another piece is due to the wage and promotion penalties women face after time away from the workforce due to family caregiving responsibilities (work that is still more often done by women). And some of the gap is due to persistent gender discrimination in hiring, pay and promotion -- despite laws that discourage the practice.

Reducing pay gaps and improving the economic security of women will require broader change than what's been tried in the past. I believe it is my job -- and the job of elected leaders at every level of government -- to commit to reducing it in the ways we can. It is with that in mind that I wish to highlight a few steps that I believe are critical to improving economic conditions for Portland women and their families in the near future:

• First, I support efforts to overturn an Oregon law passed in 2001 that precludes cities from creating their own local minimum wages that exceed the state's (now $9.10/hour). And I support a raise in our state's minimum wage that brings working families above the federal poverty line. We know that nationally two-thirds of minimum wage workers are women -- so raising minimum wage standards has a broader -- and much needed - positive impact for women.

• Second, I am proud to support the work of my colleagues, Commissioners Nick Fish and Steve Novick, as they prepare to conduct a robust pay equity audit as part of an upcoming city-wide classification and compensation study. As an employer, the City of Portland has an obligation to ensure that we are regularly identifying inequitable hiring, pay and promotion practices -- and resolving them. I am committed to ensuring that we are giving equal opportunity to the women and people of color who work for the City and paying them equitably for equal work.

• Third, in early 2013 our City Council voted unanimously to support a protected sick time law that ensures that everyone working in the city can earn up to 40 hours of sick time during the course of a year to take care of themselves or their family members when illness strikes, as it inevitably does. And now this must happen at the state level.
  
  I am very proud of the impact this new law will have on Portland women especially, who have more caregiving responsibilities and are more likely to work in service-sector jobs where sick days have been historically rare. Due in large part to the leadership of Commissioner Amanda Fritz, this law was an important step toward creating workplace standards that help women keep their jobs. No one should be fired or lose needed pay because they get the flu or need to take care of a sick child -- regardless of where they live or work. I commit to doing all that I can to ensure that all Oregonians have this right and support my colleagues in making sure this is a legislative priority for the City of Portland in the 2015 legislative session.

• Fourth and finally, if mothers are to stay connected to the workforce and earn what they are worth, they need affordable childcare. Without it, it's nearly impossible to get and keep a job. Yet childcare in Oregon is unaffordable for many.
  
  I created and continue to champion the Portland Children's Levy to ensure that kids have better access to opportunity -- and remain committed to ensuring that their mothers do, too. I support the initiative led by Mayor Charlie Hales and Multnomah County Chair Marissa Madrigal to maintain and grow funding for the in-school, wrap-around services provided by SUN Programs. Additionally, over the next year, my office will be looking for new and concrete ways the City can make child care more affordable for more Portland families -- without compromising quality or reducing already low wages for child care workers (who are mostly women). Together, and in partnership with Multnomah County, I believe we can find new models for making this critical service more available to and affordable for those who need it most.

Throughout my life in public office I have committed to creating better services for women and children. By focusing on these and other concrete steps to improve economic conditions for women, we will strengthen our entire city and help to finally reduce persistent pay and opportunity gaps.

April 08, 2014