Did you know? On Jan. 27 Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the California Equal Pay Pledge.
To ensure gender and pay equity, Newsom announced an initiative to “turn the nation’s strongest pay laws into the smallest pay gap,” according to the governor’s office website.
For the first time in state history, California will establish a chief equity officer to lead efforts to improve equity in hiring.
“We can’t reach full gender equity or close persistent gender and racial wealth gaps without reaching pay equity,” said Jennifer Siebel Newsom, whose California for ALL Women campaign promotes initiatives that build women’s economic equity, support equal representation, and advance a family-first agenda. “As the state’s largest employer, California is leading by example. I call on other employers to join us as we work to create a California where all women are valued, respected, and paid equitably.”
The latest Women’s Earnings Report, which includes state employee pay data from 2020, indicates that the state worker gender pay gap has trended downward since 2010. In 2010, the civil service gender pay gap was 21.3 percent and decreased to 14.3 percent in 2020.
Despite continued progress since the enactment of the California Equal Pay Act of 1949, studies estimate that California women continue to lose a combined $87 billion a year due to the wage gap.
