Equal Pay Day
My boss sent me a picture of a site tour with me and two of our clients. He said "Current bosses on right. Future boss on left". I thought to myself, what an amazing leader. He knows what his employees dream and are able to enjoy it with them.
When I am boss, I will dream with my employees too.
Today that dream is equal pay. It's the day we use #equalpayday to bring awareness to the inequities in pay and benefits among different people doing the exact same work. Check it out:
At the current trend, it will be 2119 before the pay gap closes.
That's too slow imho.Legislation can help. Unfortunately, our leg has been taking steps back on equal pay in exchange for the interests of a few.
The Paycheck Fairness Act failed in 2014.Â
Flexible pay and benefits increase the bottom line, make employees more efficient, and provide value to the employers. The only stakeholders hurt by transparency in unequal pay are the ones receiving unfair kickbacks or advantages.
So what do we do?
Talk about it.
Let's normalize talking about salaries & benefits through negotiation. The more we talk about it, the more common we make it. That in itself pushes back against gender stereotypes that women need to be sensitive and nurturing while men are aggressive and successful.SO LET'S GET TALKING.Here is my truth:
I want to be CEO. I am going to emulate that person until who I am trying to be converges with who I am.
It will be awkward and uncomfortable at first. I am absolutely prepared to not be prepared for that learning curve. But I ask myself: Is a CEO going to hesitate in asking for better benes? No, so neither will I. Is a CEO going to feel like an impostor for being compensated highly? No, or they'd be doing something about it.
Before I powered up to an EIT, I was an intern. At the mark of becoming an EIT, my supervisor gave me a raise. It wasn't even on my radar. I got lucky that my coworkers were thinking for me. Next goal: think for myself, just like a CEO.
After grad school, I spent 3 months without a job and a dwindling bank account. Through a connection, I flew to Austin to interview for the perfect job. A large, unsure, desperate part of me just wanting to take the offer. I had talked to my friends in the previous 3 months: why had none of the women negotiated but all of the guys did?
I talked to my mom, an assistant to a CEO that is privy to a lot of executive decision-making. She let me know that it was my choice to negotiate, and that there are ways to do it, but that ultimately it was up to me. She coached me until I felt comfortable enough to do it.
Would a CEO negotiate for their first real-job salary? Absolutely.
Negotiate for yourself.
As an individual woman, the onus isn’t on you to close the gender pay gap by asking for more. But the next time you do negotiate, we want to ensure you have the information you need to get the best results. https://leanin.org/negotiation
I mean it. We negotiate every single day. Companies expect you to negotiate on behalf of yourself, just like you'll negotiate on behalf of them. Say "I am really excited for this opportunity. I've run the numbers and I think the starting salary should be more like XXX". Negotiation makes a good impression.
So what if you get condescending amusement that a tiny lady comes out guns a-firing. The response is "we'll talk". And you say "okay I'd love to revisit this at my 6 month mark when you've seen my hardwork, dedication, and technical expertise". And even if they have no intention of talking... you've at least shown your enthusiasm and perseverance. Show your commitment at the 6 month mark.
There are many, many guides out there for negotiating. I like the SheNegotiates and the LeanIn linked above. What are some of the ones that you use? This is a link that I have bookmarked for use in the next couple of months:Â https://www.shenegotiates.com/blog/2018/1/25/word-by-word-script-how-to-ask-for-a-big-pay-raise
How can you get involved?
Spread the word. Hashtag #equalpayday. Hashtag #talkingwithAndi. I want to hear your personal experience!!There are many communities that you can be apart of to encourage diversity and equal pay. Check out these favorites:ASCE - American Society of Civil Engineershttps://www.asce.org/diversity-and-inclusion/including a national ASCE Committee on D&ISHPE - Society of Hispanic Professional Engineershttp://shpe.org/aboutcontact Brianne Martin (@the_people_engineer or https://www.linkedin.com/in/briannemartin12/ ) who has a role in this group and is an amazing mentor to young engineersThe Enginist - Facebook grouphttps://www.facebook.com/groups/enginist/group to help support each other and throw around ideas for enacting change in our communities
Reading: Emotional Intelligence 2.0Listening: Oathbringer !!!! Wooooo! Can you see my excitement spren?
Working: A very large (48,000 ac-ft) reservoir that has the capabilities to take water from a river and push water out to the river. Known as an off-channel reservoir.