Can a sister get paid? Black women at bottom of pay scale

The women point out that Black women sit at the nexus of race and gender and are buffeted by the twin specters of sexism and racism, and struggle upstream against a current of prejudice and bias which is compounded by their gender and race. This intersectional discrimination exacerbates those gender and race gaps, stymies Black women’s ability to access educational opportunities, and has a pervasive and corrosive impact on their careers and career advancement.

“It is such an engrained problem,” said Dr. Jones-DeWeever, who among her many portfolios, mentors and instructs Black women on how to navigate the shoals of business and achieve career and financial success. “The typical Black woman will lose more than $800,000 over their lifetimes and in D.C., the inequality means that Black women could lose more than $1 million.”

“A Black woman has to earn a BA to earn what a White man with a GED would earn,” continued Dr. Jones-DeWeever, a career reinvention strategist, diversity consultant, and women’s empowerment expert. “It’s huge and really hardwired into the system. It’s devastating because with Black college-educated women making as much as 30 percent less than their White male counterparts, that’s a huge disadvantage. That means not being able to put food on the table, buy clothes for your children, not being able to have a better quality of life or diverting money to wealth-building.” Ms. Brand agreed.

“While the gender pay gap is an issue for all women, it is an especially wicked problem for Black women,” she said. “Black women are already economically disadvantaged and face double discrimination (race and gender) within the workforce. The additional burden of a 38 percent pay gap exacerbates the Black wealth gap in America.”

Dr. Jones-DeWeever and Ms. Brand said that as career strategists and salary consultants, there are a number of things that Black women can and need to do to fight back against wage disparities. The first action is for Black women to embrace their power and value and translate that into dollars and benefits during salary negotiations.

“We don’t understand the basics of negotiating,” Dr. Jones-DeWeever said. “We have to understand our value and how to negotiate. When you’re first hired, that’s when you’re most powerful. I never accept the first offer. The first offer is only the beginning of negotiations. You’d be surprised how much money you can get. You have to negotiate for money, a package and vacation.

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