City should heed own call to ‘walk the walk’ on gender pay equity

Health Dept. says NM’s plan follows CDC guidelines and best practices

Mayor Tim Keller announced last month he was tightening down a program giving vendors competing for city contracts a preference if the disparity between salaries of their male and female employees did not exceed 7%.

The original incentive program to combat pay inequity was designed by activist Martha Burk and sponsored by City Councilor Diane Gibson in 2015. Under the new rule, a vendor must now have zero disparity to get the 5% preference.

“The playing field won’t be level until women, and especially women of color, earn fair wages compared to their counterparts,” Keller said in a statement announcing the change. “Part of that means rewarding companies that walk the walk.”

Fair enough. In addition, the new rule mirrors rules adopted by Bernalillo County and the Albuquerque Bernalillo County Water Utility Authority, providing consistency among partnering entities. On the surface, the city’s change appears a good move. But there are two problems here. First, both Burk and Gibson fear going to zero will essentially render the incentive program meaningless. “It will be too hard to do; I think you have to incentivize people gradually to get them from point A to point B, and this to me seems like too big a step,” said Burk, who also helped design the state’s gender pay policies.

Seven percent disparity might sound like a lot — it is. But not in comparison to the average pay gap in New Mexico of 21%. (New Mexico as a state ranks 15th nationally.) Data collected through the city procurement process found gender pay gaps up to 40%. About 80 companies have received the city’s certification since 2015.

“I think it (the change) effectively just kills the whole program that we worked so very hard on,” Gibson said.

And as for “walking the walk,” civil rights attorney Alexandra Freedman Smith is representing about 600 women who have joined a handful of individual plaintiffs in a class-action lawsuit against the city of Albuquerque alleging significant and systemic gender pay inequity.

The lawsuit filed in 2018 and amended in 2019 claims that depending on how jobs are classified, women are paid $3 an hour to $6 an hour less than male counterparts who perform the same functions, and in many cases the women have been in the jobs longer.

The base pay also impacts overtime and pensions, and in some cases plaintiffs allege as much as a $7-an-hour difference. Freedman Smith says some of her clients are owed as much as $100,000 because of the pay differential.

The state’s Fair Pay for Women Act adopted in 2013 makes it unlawful to pay women less than men for equal work that requires equal skill, effort and responsibility and that is performed under similar conditions. There are exceptions, including seniority and merit.

The lawsuit was certified as a class action in July by state District Judge Clay Campbell — a decision the city is fighting in court. The city won’t comment on litigation, but says the current administration “has been at the forefront of the pay equity fight for years.”

Freedman Smith, who served as staff attorney for the state commission that proposed a new state Civil Rights Act, sees it differently.

“It’s particularly egregious (Mayor Tim Keller’s Office) came out with something saying we want to have pay equity for women by giving preference to contractors who pay men and women equally,” she told New Mexico Political Report. “Mayor Keller needs to lead by example instead of fighting the women who work for him and steadfastly refusing them what they should be paid under the law.”

These are serious allegations with potentially taxpayer dollars attached, and the new policy brings the issue back into focus. Keller told the Journal “we are working hard on legacy pay inequities . ... We’re working on that in our own house, and with contractors bidding for taxpayer dollars.”

That is good to hear. In addition, the public, the women who work for the city and the City Council all need and deserve an honest accounting. And if inequities are found, a plan to fix them and compensate the victims. That would be “walking the walk.”

The easy answer is what we all know to be true — that children of all ages learn best when they are in-person, and if we can bring students back to school safely, we should.

With infection, hospitalization and mortality rates all down and dropping, we have conditions that for the first time in many months allow for such a safe return — if we do it right. In addition, our understanding of the COVID-19 virus has steadily improved, putting us in a better position to develop and implement a comprehensive and flexible plan that adequately mitigates the risks of in-person learning – for students and teachers.

As a public health expert, I certainly understand the very real concerns that some teachers have about going back into the classroom and putting themselves at risk of contracting the virus. However, with almost a year of evidence behind us, we know that the risks of contracting the virus when proper precautions are firmly in place is acceptably low. A recent study in North Carolina showed no instances of child-to-adult transmission of SARS-CoV-2 reported within schools.

At the end of the day, thousands of essential workers, from health care workers to grocery store workers and others across the state, have made use of COVID Safe Practices to safeguard their well-being while continuing to provide the services we all count on.

From the start of this pandemic, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham has rightly followed the science, and this decision to expand in-person learning is in lockstep with an evidence-based approach. This decision is not a sudden one, but the result of a concerted, monthslong effort by the state’s departments of Health, Human Services and Public Education to analyze the scientific evidence and medical data and closely monitor the evolving public health conditions. It is also not a decision made in a vacuum from the latest science. In fact, on the same day that the plan was announced, the top medical experts in the nation came to the same conclusion. The national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention cited a “preponderance of evidence” that children can go to school safely if they wear masks and practice social distancing and if other steps are taken to control community spread of COVID-19.

New Mexico’s plan is in sync with the CDC’s guidance: It prevents crowding in classrooms and common areas, it requires steps to be taken to improve indoor air quality, and it expands screening to detect and isolate those who are infected but have no symptoms. Both maintain options for online learning, particularly for those at increased risk of the worst COVID outcomes. If we do those things, it is unlikely that schools will contribute meaningfully to increased community transmission, the CDC said.

The governor’s plan provides districts and charter schools the flexibility to decide if and when to expand inperson learning at their schools based on their own individual conditions and circumstances. The success of this new, forward-leaning approach will depend in no small measure on how well these districts and schools manage their situations.

Impatience and frustration with the current school situation, which has been so hard on students and parents, is not reason alone to change course. But taken together with what we now know about mitigating the risks of the virus as well as the improving health conditions in our state, I believe the time is right to move forward with what is the right plan for New Mexico.

If in-person learning is best for our children, and the conditions for doing so are now deemed safe by our state’s health and education experts, as well as our nation’s top disease experts, perhaps the better question is, why wouldn’t we move now to expand in-person learning?

MADISON, Wis. — Michigan only needed 20 minutes or so to shake off the rust from a three-week layoff.

Isaiah Livers scored 20 points, Hunter Dickinson had 11 points and 15 rebounds, and the third-ranked Wolverines rallied from a 14-point deficit to beat No. 21 Wisconsin 67-59 on Sunday.

The Wolverines (14-1, 9-1 Big Ten) hadn’t played since a 70-53 victory at Purdue on Jan. 22. Michigan announced the next day it was pausing all athletic activities after several people linked to the athletic department tested positive for a COVID-19 variant that transmits at a higher rate.

After trailing most of the way, Michigan scored the game’s final eight points. Wisconsin (15-7, 9-6) collected just six points and one basket over the final 7:45.

Trice scored 16 points, Aleem Ford had 15 and Jonathan Davis had 11 for Wisconsin. Michigan’s Franz Wagner had 10 of his 14 points in the second half.

DRAKE 51, No. 22 LOYOLA CHICAGO 50, OT: In Des Moines, Iowa, Tremell Murphy scored 17 points, including the go-ahead basket in overtime, as Drake rallied to win despite a poor shooting performance.

Murphy’s layup with 2:50 remaining put the Bulldogs ahead for good, 49-48, in the defensive struggle between Missouri Valley Conference powers. Loyola had two shots blocked in the final 15 seconds before Murphy made the clinching steal and was fouled.

Drake (20-2, 11-2 MVC) won despite shooting 33.3%. Loyola (18-4, 13-2) shot 35.1%.

Saturday WAC

NEW MEXICO STATE 65, SEATTLE

58: In Seattle, Jabari Rice scored 19 points and Johnny McCants scored 16 and New Mexico State beat Seattle late Saturday night.

Clayton Henry buried a 3-pointer to tie it at 14 with 9:23 remaining before halftime, followed with a jump shot and New Mexico State (5-5, 2-4 Western Athletic Conference) never trailed again. Henry finished with 10 points and 10 rebounds. The Aggies amassed a 45-24 rebounding advantage with 19 coming on the offensive end.

Top 25 Women

No. 1 SOUTH CAROLINA 66, LSU 59: In Columbia, S.C., Destanni Henderson scored 19 points and Aliyah Boston added 12 points, 13 rebounds and six blocks for the Gamecocks as the nation’s top-ranked team beat LSU for its 31st straight Southeastern Conference victory.

The Gamecocks (17-2, 12-0 SEC) haven’t lost in league play since falling to Arkansas in the SEC Tournament quarterfinals in March 2019.

No. 6 TEXAS A&M 80, No. 16 TENNESSEE

70: In College Station, Texas, Destiny Pitts had a season-high 18 points and Texas A&M used strong free throw shooting late to hold on for a win over Tennessee.

It’s the seventh straight victory for Texas A&M (19-1, 10-1 SEC) and improves the Aggies to 8-0 against ranked opponents this season.

No. 7 BAYLOR 60, TEXAS 35: In Waco, Texas, Moon Ursin and Queen Egbo had double-doubles for Baylor as the Big 12-leading Lady Bears beat Texas while holding the Longhorns to their second-fewest points ever in a game.

NaLyssa Smith had 14 points for the Lady Bears (16-2, 11-1 Big 12), including the first basket of the game that put them ahead for good, when off opening tip she leaped to get a lob pass from DiDi Richards and competed the layup before coming out of the air. Richards had 10 assists.

No. 10 ARIZONA 75, WASHINGTON 53: In Tucson, Ariz., Sam Thomas scored 20 points, including hitting a career-high six 3-pointers, and Aari McDonald also had 20 points to help Arizona run its winning streak to six games with a Pac-12 victory over Washington.

Cate Reese had 12 points, Shaina Pellington

had 11 points and Thomas added a season-high seven rebounds for the Wildcats (14-2, 12-2).

No. 15 INDIANA 58, ILLINOIS 50: In Champaign, Ill., Ali Patberg scored 16 points and Indiana overcame a horrible shooting day to turn back Illinois.

The struggles of leading scorer Mackenzie Holmes (18.7 points a game) emphazied the Hoosiers’ struggles. The 62% shooter — which is among the top five in the nation — was 1-of-16 shooting and put up seven points.

No. 23 SOUTH DAKOTA STATE 73, ORAL ROBERTS 61: In Tulsa, Okla., Myah Selland scored a career-high 30 points and South Dakota State scored the last 10 points of the game for the Jackrabbits’ 14th-straight win.

Compared with Saturday’s 82-60 win over the Golden Eagles, the Jackrabbits had to work much harder but made all the plays down the stretch.

No. 24 GEORGIA 82, MISSOURI 64: In Columbia, Mo., Gabby Connally scored 29 points, sinking six 3-pointers, Jenna Staiti scored 12 of her 18 points after halftime and Georgia broke away from Missouri.

After a 35-35 halftime tie, Georgia (164, 8-4 SEC) shot 47% in the second half, with Connally making five 3-pointers.