Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Equal Pay Day

Everyone knows that today is Tax Day the annual deadline for U.S. Citizens to file their income tax; but did you know it is also Equal Pay Day? Equal Pay Day symbolically marks the number of extra days women would have to work into 2012 in order to earn, on average, as much as their male counterparts do for the same work. According to a recent study by the American Association of University Women, the average disparity between men's and women's wages in the U.S. is 76%, with the average salary for men being $50,549 and for women, $38, 368. Where you live in the U.S. makes a difference with Washington, D.C. Being the best location and where women earn 91% of what men do. Wyoming is the worst at 64% and Illinois is not so good either. The wage gap in Illinois between men's and women's salaries is ranked as 34th in the nation. For college educated Illinois women, that amounts to about $1.2 million in lost earnings over a lifetime. This is a very real issue for Illinois families.