Companies Move to Close Wage Gap in Wake of George Floyd Protests
Amidst the murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer, many companies have voiced their concern over racism issues in the United States.
One of the things that is being discussed is working to ensure that the racial wage gap is a thing of the past.
What is the Racial Wage Gap?
An unfortunate fact in the United States is that African Americans tend to make less money than white Americans despite the same level of schooling. CNBC compiled some shocking statistics that show the from the high school education level on up, white Americans consistently make more money per hour than black Americans or Hispanic Americans.
There is a similar issue for women as women in the United States tend to make less than 80% of what men make despite the same level of education.
The Issues Are Not Just There
A recent study in 2016 found out that African Americans who “whitened” their resumes had a better chance of getting called in for interviews than those that didn’t. It was also the same case for Asian Americans.
“Whitening” means that they masked their race on the resume by doing things such as using a basic white name rather than their name given at birth.
These issues are nothing new. In the early 2000s a similar study showed that white people were more likely to get a call back for their resume than a black person despite having the same level of education.
What Are Companies Doing About it?
Many companies have taken to social media in support of the black community and the #BlackLivesMatter movement including General Motors, General Mills and Coca Cola. Some have even donated money to Black Lives Matter and the NAACP including Pokémon who donated $200,000 and Niantic who donated $5 million.
Unfortunately, the Racial Wage Gap cannot be dealt with without some legislation that forces companies to release pay data broken down by race and gender. There was an Obama-era bill that required this, but it has been shelved in recent years.
What Can I Do?
A common trend that is coming up is that it is no longer just okay to not be racist, but instead people need to despise racism and call it out.
Many of us despise racism, but may tend to turn a blind eye or deaf ear when we encounter racism. There is no longer a place for racism, especially in the work place. If an employee or even your boss is making racism comments or is discriminating against people based on their race or gender, speak up. Talk to your Human Resources Department and see to it that action is taken.
