As we wrote this holiday article, we did some research about equal pay in the U.S. Right now, it would appear that women earn just 82 cents for every dollar a man earns doing the same job. Women of color earned even less. This should adequately highlight the pay disparity that still exists, although there have been forward strides over the past few years.

With that being said, there’s still a whole lot of work to be done and this is why International Equal Pay Day was created. This holiday is observed on the 18th of September and not only raises the public’s awareness about pay inequality but also attempts to motivate people to take action.

The History Of International Equal Pay Day

This holiday is just one holiday that has existed on an international level since 2019. However, it does have its roots in an American holiday called National Equal Pay Day. This is a holiday that was founded in 1996 to raise awareness of the ongoing gender wage gap.

Unfortunately, some 26+ years later, there is still a need for this holiday as wage inequality is still felt by far too many people.

Important Facts About The Gender Wage Gap

As we stated in our introductory paragraph, we decided to do some research before we wrote this article on International Equal Pay Day. We came across a wide range of facts that we feel most of our readers will find quite informative, so we decided to share some of these facts below.

• Based on 2019 data, Hispanic and Latino women make 54 cents for every dollar a white male makes.
• Black and Alaska Native Women make 57 cents, and black women make 62 cents for every dollar a white male makes.
• Asian women make approximately 90 cents for every dollar a white male makes.
• Although gender-based pay discrimination has been illegal since 1963, it is still a widespread practice.
• The gender wage gap can contribute to hundreds of thousands to over a million dollars of lost earnings over the course of a 40-year timespan.

Observing International Equal Pay Day

Everyone is encouraged to start a conversation about equal pay on this day and to voice their opinion to their congressional representatives.

Getting bills such as the Paycheck Fairness Act passed through Congress is a great way to tackle the problem of pay inequality — at least, in the U.S. People are also encouraged to use their voices on social media to spread the word about this holiday. This can easily be done by using the hashtag #InternationalEqualPayDay.