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Kids Speaking Up: Equal Pay for Equal Work
Eighty-nine years after the passing of the 19th amendment, when women all across the nation were given the right to vote, it is ridiculous that some women still aren’t getting paid the same salary as their male counterparts, based solely on the fact that they are female.
It all started in 1979, when a woman named Lilly Ledbetter began working at a Goodyear Tire & Rubber plant in Gadsden, Ala. Ledbetter worked as supervisor, a position almost always held by a man. Over the years she had suspected she was being paid less than her male co-workers, even if they held a position lower than supervisor. In 1997, it was found that Ledbetter was correct, and that while she was only being paid $3,727 a month, other male supervisors at the plant were being paid anywhere from $4,287 to $5,236 a month.
Over her time working for Goodyear, Ledbetter made approximately $200,000 less than what she was supposed to have been paid. From this resulted a court case, Ledbetter vs. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., and thus resulted in the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act.
It was determined in 2005, that the average woman earns 77 cents to every man’s dollar, and that number is even lower for African-American women with 71 cents, and for Latina women, only 58 cents.
Obviously, we still have a ways to go.
Although the statistics sound bleak, the passing of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act into U.S. law is a huge step for pay equality in the country, and it should help everyone, regardless of gender, race or religion, to reach their highest earning potential.
Katie Fearon is a freshman at Dos Pueblos High.
Comments
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» on 02.05.09 @ 01:19 PM
July 20th 1969 - 10:56 PM EDT
KRONKRITE: here are the images now…
Mr. D. oneTeacher: Contact light! Okay, engine stop. ACA - out of detent.
Katie Fearon: Out of detent
Mr. D. oneTeacher: Mode control - both auto. Descent engine command override off. Engine arm - off. 413 is in.
Katie Fearon: Three seconds… three feet, two and a half down… Houston uh…, Tranquility Base here, the Eagle has landed…
“THAT’S ONE SMALL STEP FOR… (a) MAN, ONE GIANT LEAP FOR MANKIND.”
KRONKRITE: Neil Armstrong, thirty-eight year old American standing on the surface of the moon.
(Walter can not help but held his jittering legs from dancing…)
PEOPLE – BETTER FEARON TEACHING – NO MR. D. oneTEACHER CAN EVER HOPE FOR. EDUCATION IS THE LAW.
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» on 02.05.09 @ 06:25 PM
Men are also more aggresive than women, and Thats why men overall make more money than women. There is an old saying, the only reason women have any power at all is because men let them..
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» on 02.05.09 @ 06:50 PM
What I’ve never understood about this issue is that if women are consistently paid less than men, why wouldn’t an employer hire only women to cut costs?
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» on 02.06.09 @ 05:56 PM
Yeah, Katie! I can attest to the pay issue in a slightly different form. I was a H.S. teacher many years ago. To teach summer school was a good way to supplement our pay which was only for 9 or 10 monthly paychecks One summer I applied to teach but the principal told me that he’d love to hire me, for I was best qualified to teacher advanced Spanish. But he needed to hire a family man who had an entire family to support. My obstacle was having a husband who was presumably supporting me and our child. My salary was a “second salary”, not as important as the man’s salary (his wife didn’t work, presumably). What’s even more amazing is that I never thought that policy to be unfair to me! So we have come a long ways by hard work, patience, and speaking up.
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» on 02.06.09 @ 06:46 PM
If women are equal and cheaper I would hire then, but they have so many issues—-weaker, slower, complainers, drama, kids, hormones, boyfriends, and attorneys waiting for you to do the right thing. Fire them-now if they are Black Asian or Hispanis women, you would be a fool to hire them. Thank the plaitiff attorneys for lower demand for their sevices.
Who needs the problems.
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» on 02.07.09 @ 07:00 AM
I have not been paid for neglecting by the community in kicking me out of my teaching position out at DPHS. I tried telling lawyers, parents, people, any senses in general that according to the Ledbetter Act, they are going to pay more than will ever be bargained for.
I talked to atleast seven big firms in town but they called me crazy. One firm even called me back with one of the partner who spoke broken English and said that I already quit. I did write in a letter to all the lawyers that I dated June 14 which was not possible because it was not a school day. The School Board is suppose to fix the problem but did not because they were afraid of the Hermachis case.
I need a LAWYER now. My name is John Demonteverde and I wrote those postings under the name of Mr. D. oneTeacher, spatsky, Easy, and tons more whacky ones.
Leave me a message with this e-mail because my case is truly my life written out.
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» on 02.07.09 @ 08:25 AM
Trust me, dude, it’s not a lawyer you need.
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» on 02.07.09 @ 02:23 PM
Dude, I know, times never change to see past the color of the skin. I thought the “FEARON” vs. fear on thinking sounded so crissspae. You can never guess what happened to me without asking or blogging away.
In the land of the One-eyed King, I have two eyes and still being chased around. They kicked me out and gave the position to someone I can not scratch my head. Read the MINUTES…! It is amazing what LAWYERS do.
Do I need myself to complain now?
LETS FOCUS ON FEARON BECAUSE WHAT SHE SAID WAS ACTUALLY WHAT I HOPED FOR. FOCUS.
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» on 02.07.09 @ 02:35 PM
People who produce less money for their bosses are paid less.
In the motion picture industry leading men, on average, make more than leading ladies because more people go to the movies to see the top male actors, Like Tom Cruise. However, and actress like Angelina Jolie makes more money than 99.99% of male actors because she’s a bigger box office draw.
It saddens me to see a bright girl like Katie grow up to be a whiner because some guy works harder and makes more money that she does.
Katie: work hard, get good grades, excel at what you do in your career and you will make more than your male counterparts.
And stop being a cry baby.
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» on 02.07.09 @ 08:09 PM
John D., where to start? I must say that it has been relatively easy to pick out your posts the last several days because of your unique, nonsensical writing style. While I’m sure you have many personal issues that you would like resolved, I am at a loss as to why you think this is the format to do that? These articles are not personal ads, they are intended to be opinion sites, about the topic at hand. I’m guessing Noozhawk has the integrity to continue to allow your unintelligent ramblings as part of their commitment to free speech, but that doesn’t mean we can’t police ourselves. Let’s try to keep these blogs intelligent and relevant, or at a minimum understandable. To paraphrase the movie Billy Madison, I think I am dumber for having read some of your posts.
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» on 02.10.09 @ 08:15 AM
In laughing about me posting my own unintelligence as a teacher, I am paraphrasing more seriously:
All I want for Katie is in any type of policing as to police itself, we as a people better to say I hate to see hate because I am your teacher. I am trying to say even if I am not respected, but in my unintelligence everyone will hear me most - I’ll only keep sounding like a fool if you do not listen to me.
Admitting your dumb, is the first step you can laugh about because I am have been called dumber by only those who do not hear me for knowing any sense for themselves.
PEACE: I know John Demonteverde is still trying to teach something at DPHS even if he shouted. Unlike most, he held his integrity out being your TEACHER.
Not listening to a Teacher shout only breeds more hate any payment for equality can no payment work for. Any sense of FREEDOM any one will know is by what was taught.
Education is The Law - qed.
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» on 02.12.09 @ 06:59 AM
We all know how this equal pay thing works out. It gives slackers an excuse (legally backed) to do less while demanding equal reward.
Pay should be based on merit. Stop whining kid, you haven’t even entered the work force yet and with this attitude you’re going nowhere fast. You will be headed to the welfare lines. Stop whining and demanding, get to work learning and improving yourself, and learn about the rewards of hard work. Obviously you’re being brainwashed into the next generation of socialists by the current generation of socialists.
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» on 04.15.09 @ 08:48 AM
Katie, you are absolutely correct. Pay equality is a necessity in an egalitarian society. For years Lilly Ledbetter did not realize her coworkers were being paid far more than she was, partially because in our society pay rate is often considered private. But that privacy does not protect many workers; instead, it has long protected the good old boy network.
Perhaps a combination of laws that require fairness and a society that is less secretive about wages will ensure that all people are paid the same earnings for the same work.
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