Unhappy Hour raises awareness, not glasses
The Business and Professional Women will bring attention to Equal Pay Day and the fact that women and minorities still earn less than men.
By WAVENEY ANN MOORE
Published April 23, 2006
ST. PETERSBURG - The St. Petersburg-Pinellas chapter of Business and Professional Women is hosting an "Unhappy Hour" on Tuesday to observe the national Equal Pay Day, which is meant to raise awareness about unfair pay for women and racial minorities in America.
This year's event will be held at Aspirations Winery, 408-B 33rd Ave. N, and is open to the public - both men and women.
Some women might not realize that equal pay is still an issue in today's working world, said Kristin Guenthardt, former president of the chapter.
"Oftentimes they are not even aware that they are not being treated in the same way as their male counterparts, that there is still some ground to cover,'' said Guenthardt, a financial adviser.
A study conducted by the Business and Professional Women's national office showed that women were making 69 cents to each dollar that men earned in 1988, Guenthardt said. In 2005, it was 77 cents to the dollar.
"It's not moving that fast,'' she said.
Equal Pay Day stems from the National Committee on Pay Equity, a coalition of women's and civil rights organizations, labor unions, and religious, professional and other groups. According to the committee's Web site, www.pay-equity.org, the day is observed in April to indicate how far into each year the average woman must work to earn as much as a man earned the previous year.
"Because women on average earn less, they must work longer for the same pay. For women of color, the wage gap is greater,'' the Web site says.
According to the pay equity coalition, the disparity costs the average American woman and her family an estimated $523,000 in lost wages, which has an impact on her Social Security benefits and pensions.
Among those expected to attend Tuesday's Unhappy Hour are members of the National Council of Negro Women and another local chapter of the Business and Professional Women, which meets in the evening, and representatives from other Tampa Bay area chapters. Anyone is welcome to attend the event, Guenthardt said.
Local members began observing the day in 2004, and red clothing or accessories will be prominent in Tuesday's event. That's because the National Committee on Pay Equity is asking supporters across the nation to wear red as a symbol of how far women and minorities are "in the red'' with their pay.
Members of the Business and Professional Women's group probably will wear their red purse pins, Guenthardt said.
The pins grew out of the Red Purse Campaign launched in 1988 to bring attention to pay disparity. Members initially carried red purses and sent politicians red purses, totes and pins. The promotion was revived in 2004 with the Red Purse Society, which raises funds to support equal pay education, awareness and activities.
During Tuesday's gathering, specially labeled bottles of wine will be sold to raise money for the Red Purse Society. But, Guenthardt said, the event is not meant to be a fundraiser.
"It is to raise awareness and get people talking,'' she said.