Announcing Blog for Fair Pay Day 2010

April 20th will mark Equal Pay Day–the point in 2010 when the average woman’s wages finally catch up with what the average man earned in 2009.

And on that day, we’re asking bloggers and tweeters to raise their voices in support of fair pay for women by posting about this crucial issue on Equal Pay Day. Please sign up to Blog for Fair Pay, and help us spread the word! Last year, more than 160 bloggers took part in Blog for Fair Pay Day 2009. You can check out their posts here.

The theme for this year’s Blog for Fair Pay Day is, “What would it mean if there weren’t a $10,662 wage gap?” You can use this theme as a starting point to discuss what you could do with a pay increase of $10,662–the average gap in wages for men and women. You can sign up for Blog for Fair Pay Day on April 20th by visiting http://action.nwlc.org/blogforfairpay. You can also download a graphic for your post, or embed the #fairpay Twitter widget.

Here is some more important information to keep in mind as you’re writing your blog post:

When President Obama signed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act into law last year, it restored the right to hold employers accountable in court for wage discrimination. But significant as it is, the fight for pay equity is not over. Women still only make 77 cents for every dollar earned by men–and for women of color, the numbers are even worse: African-American women make 69 cents and Latinas make 59 cents for every dollar paid to men. In order for women to be able to successfully challenge pay discrimination, the law must be improved.

A bill before the Senate, the Paycheck Fairness Act, would update and strengthen the law in important ways and would give women the tools they need to hold their employers accountable. Please write to your senators and urge them to support the Paycheck Fairness Act, and find out more about equal pay for women.