Equal Pay Day is March 12th, 2024.
It’s a symbolic day that supports pay equality within the workforce and brings awareness to discrimination affecting women, women of color, and other marginalized communities.
In this post, I’ll explain what Equal Pay Day is and when it’s observed each year. Then we’ll dive into why it’s important to your small business and what you can do to support pay equality right now.
What is Equal Pay Day?
In 1996, the National Committee on Pay Equity (NCPE) founded “National Pay Inequity Awareness Day,” a day that brought awareness to the gap between men’s and women’s wages in the United States. Since then, the NCPE has organized what we now know as Equal Pay Day to support efforts that reduce pay discrimination in workplaces across the country.
Over time, this day has expanded to include other countries and marginalized communities as well – groups that are honored with their own Equal Pay Days that are observed on different days of the year.
That’s why we’ve created the list below. It highlights when Equal Pay Day takes place as well as other Equal Pay Days that you’ll want to mark on your calendar.
When is Equal Pay Day?
This year, Equal Pay Day is March 12th.
Equal Pay Day takes place on a different day each year. This is because it represents how far into the year women need to work to earn the same as men. The further into the year that this day is observed, the greater the pay gap is between men and women.
This video explains how the date is calculated each year.
Equal Pay Days
As we noted earlier, there are other Equal Pay Days that highlight inequalities affecting different countries and minority groups. Below is a list of days that are observed this year.
Note: Data sourced from the U.S. Government Accountability Office
- Black Women’s Equal Pay Day (July 19th, 2024): This day recognizes pay inequality affecting Black women. Compared to White men in the U.S., Black women earn 37¢ less on the dollar.
- Latina Equal Pay Day (October 3rd, 2024): This day brings awareness to pay inequality affecting Latina women. Compared to White men in the U.S., Latina women earn 42¢ less on the dollar.
- International Equal Pay Day (September 18th, 2024): This day recognizes pay inequality affecting all women around the world. In the U.S. alone, women make 18¢ less than men on the dollar.
- LGBTQIA+ Equal Pay Day (June 13th, 2024): This day brings awareness to pay inequality affecting members of the LGBTQIA+ community.
- AANHPI Women’s Equal Pay Day (April 3rd, 2024): This day brings awareness to pay inequality affecting Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders. Compared to White men in the U.S., these women earn 19¢ less on the dollar.
- Native Women’s Equal Pay Day (November 21, 2024): This day recognizes pay inequality affecting American Indian and Alaskan Native women. Compared to White men in the U.S., these women earn 42¢ less on the dollar.
Why does Equal Pay Day matter to SMBs?
On average, women are underpaid compared to their male coworkers. The data below breaks this down by race and ethnicity.
The numbers are staggering and when put into context, it’s alarming for any business – especially SMBs. Since your workforce is smaller, each employee makes a greater impact on your output. If you lose a high-performing employee because you underpaid them, that creates ripple effects that negatively impact growth. And, if you develop a reputation for underpaying employees, you’ll struggle to attract top talent that will help your business succeed.
The fact is – it’s not hard to find out what your coworkers are making and it’s not hard to find out what you should be making for your exact role in your exact industry. Not only are folks more transparent, but sites like Career Builder, Indeed, and Glassdoor have made it easier to access this information.
In short, your employees will figure out if they’re underpaid and it’s important to know how you can support equal pay at your business going forward.
How to Support Equal Pay Day
Here are a few ways you can support Equal Pay Day this year.
1. Conduct a pay equity analysis.
A pay equity analysis reviews how much people are paid at your organization and highlights inequalities that might be affecting your workplace. You can conduct this audit by reviewing payroll data and cross-checking it against the demographic data available on your employees. Pay attention to women, people of color, and other marginalized groups that traditionally are paid less than others on your team.
2. Use equal pay best practices when hiring.
Another step that you can take to combat pay discrimination is to learn about fair hiring. Use this day to learn about topics like inclusive language, fair salary ranges, and other best practices that managers should keep in mind when sourcing new talent.
3. Post on social media.
One way to show public support for Equal Pay Day is to post on social media. Equal Pay Today offers a handy toolkit for posting about Equal Pay Day on your company’s social channels.
4. Wear red.
On March 12th, the simplest way to show your support for Equal Pay Day is to wear red. Red represents how far “in the red” women and other minorities are when it comes to fair pay.
Observing Equal Payday 2024
Equal Pay Day is not a holiday. We do not “celebrate” it, but rather observe it and hope that one day we won’t need to dedicate a day to encouraging equal pay within the workplace.
As a small business owner, this is an important day for you and your team. The more you invest in a happy, healthier company, the greater returns you’ll see.
