Tempe businesses, groups take steps to close gender wage gap
What do mechanics, architects, bankers and the city of Tempe have in common?
They’re among eight businesses and organizations designated as equal pay businesses working to close the gender wage gap.
“This is truly remarkable for everyone in this room,” Mayor Mark Mitchell told a gathering in the council chambers on Wednesday. “The inequality in women’s wages doesn’t just affect women; the wage gap affects us all.”
The announcement of the equal pay partnerships in Tempe came a day after the national Equal Pay Day, which signifies the number of days on average it takes an American woman to earn the same amount of money as an American man.
The companies and organizations designated as equal pay business partners are the “beta group” of what Tempe hopes will ensure equal pay based on gender. The eight partners are GoDaddy, Mountain Park Health Center, Express Employment Professionals, Architekton, Mulligan’s Manor, Landings Credit Union, Dinos 2 Personalized Auto Sales and City of Tempe
The program requires companies to complete a worksheet to help determine if they are paying equally. Companies do not have to provide the city with payroll information, but the city does offer assistance in working to become an equal pay business.
Once a business is designated an equal pay business partner, they can use the city’s equal pay logo on their hiring materials and websites.
The city also hosts wage-negotiation classes that are open to anyone, but are especially helpful for women.
“Men are often more comfortable asking for a raise than women,” said Jenny Diaz, executive director at nonprofit Mulligan’s Manor, a group home for at-risk youth.
Essen Otu, senior director of diversity and community affairs at Mountain Park Health Center, said the designation will help the organization keep and retain talent.
“I think we were pleasantly surprised,” Otu said about the results of the equal pay self-assessment. More than half of its board of directors are women, 82 percent of its employees are women and 65 percent of its managers are women.
“This is really a move and step in the right direction,” Otu said. “We hope to be a leader in creating momentum that encourages businesses to self-access.”
Goodwill Industries of Central Arizona is combining operations with an affiliate in northern Arizona, creating an entity with 82 stores, three clearance centers, 22 career centers and more than 3,500 employees across the state.
The merger of the Phoenix-based non-profit with Goodwill Industries of Northern Arizona received the approval of both boards and a green light from Goodwill Industries, a national organization, at the end of March. The combined operation will be called Goodwill of Central & Northern Arizona, with operations in the Phoenix area plus Prescott, Yuma, Flagstaff and other places.
The organization will be closing its Northern Arizona stores for a few days on different dates in April and May, then reopening them. It helped place more than 44,000 Arizonans in jobs last year.