INFORMATION ON NYSPEC

For more than 20 years, Women on the Job and the WOJ Task Force have fought for the rights facing Long Island's working women. One form of discrimination that persists is wage discrimination. This occurs when an employer pays women and minorities less than male workers who perform tasks requiring equal skill, effort, responsibility and education.

The Women on the Job Task Force founded the New York State Pay Equity Coalition (NYSPEC) for the purpose of expanding advocacy efforts for legislative reform and to educate the public about comparable worth in New York State. In 1998, WOJ participated in Public Hearings held by legislators so workers could speak out for pay equity legislation. We were successful in having Assemblyman DiNapoli, Senator Balboni and Senator Marcellino sponsor the initial PE bills in their respective houses. For 5 consecutive years, these and other Pay Equity bills have passed the Assembly but not the Senate. Our legislators who are sponsors of the bills advised us to broaden our constituency; therefore the NYSPEC was formed.

Women, on average, earn 73% of what men earn. It takes women almost seven working days to earn what a man earns in five! For women of color, the wage gap is even worse. African American women make 65% of white men's earnings and Latinas make only 52%. Men of color also experience wage disparities. The ratio for African American men is 81%; for Hispanic men it is 62%. The majority of women who work outside the home provide half or more of their fmaily's income. Current Equal Pay Law applies only to jobs with the same title, so thousand of NYS women who work in female-dominated occupations - clerks, secretaries, health aides, pre-school teachers, and dental assistants among others - are underpaid and they are undervalued. Pay Equity Laws would remedy equal pay law by requiring employers to compensate women whose skills, effort, responsibilities and education are comparable to their male co-workers: to give equal pay for work of equal value.

To date, there are 11 statewide and 6 regional organizations representing tens of thousands of New Yorkers who have joined for the purpose of advocating in favor of passage of pay equity legislation. The member organizations include:

Statewide:
American Assn. Of University Women (AAUW)
NYS Federation of Business and Professional Women's Clubs (BPW)
Civil Service Employees Assn. (CSEA)
Coalition of Labor Unions Women (CLUW)
League of Women Voters, NYS (LWV)
National Organization for Women (NOW, NYS)
NYS Girl Scout Legislative Network
NYS United Teachers (NYSUT)
United Public Service Employees Union (UPSEU)
United University Professionals
Women's Sports Foundation

Regional:
Coalition of Black Trade Unionists (CBTU - Nassau)
Long Island Women's Agenda (LIWA)
Long Island Progressive Coalition
NAACP, Islip Town Branch
Working Families Party - Nassau County

Founding Member:
Women on the Job Task Force
If your organization would like to strengthen our efforts, please contact us at: wojtf@optonline.net, or 516-883-1691.