You may see Equal Pay Day trending today. It’s a symbolic day used to raise awareness about the wage gap between men and women. Texas women earn 83 cents for every dollar men earn, according to the Dallas-based Texas Women’s Foundation. In a follow-up to its 2024 Economic Issues for Women in Texas Report, the foundation released new data on the impact of the wage gap on women, families, and the state’s economy. The new information shows the annual impact of the wage gap has grown 27% since 2019 to $60.1 billion annually in lost earnings and economic activity. “So the 60 billion dollars is actually lost earnings for women. So if we were to pay women fairly and just comparably to their male counterparts. That’s 60 billion dollars would go right back into the Texas economy in consumer spending and in women’s abilities to survive and thrive,” said Karen Hughes White, President and CEO of Texas Women’s Foundation. Hughes White says the research shows over her lifetime, the average Texas woman stands to lose $750,000 in earnings. To help boost paychecks, the foundation is doing something new. It’s partnering with the American Association of University Women to offer salary negotiation workshops. These virtual workshops will take place on April 17 and May 15, and participants can register online. “These workshops, which are called Work Smart. They’ll be offered free to women across Texas; virtual workshops designed to teach you how to evaluate your skills and then negotiate the best salary and benefits package for you,” Hughes White said. ” The Work Smart workshops teach women how to evaluate their skills and how to understand what their skills are worth in the market. Then the workshops give you those strategies for communicating that, having those conversations and sometimes they’re difficult or scary conversations. Women have a tendency not to want to talk about money. These workshops tell you how to dig deeply, know the facts and negotiate politely kindly but persistently.” Hughes White points out that Equal Pay Day is tied specifically to white women; Black and Hispanic women work much longer to achieve equal pay. “Women represent 46% of the workforce in Texas and drive much of the growth and innovation of the state’s $2.4 trillion economy. Couple that with population projections that indicate the continued, outpaced growth of women in Texas, and the business case is clear. To sustain the level of economic success we enjoy here in Texas, the time is now to invest in some, and that starts with closing the wage gap,” Hughes White said in a news release. As a core pillar of its mission, TXWF invests in women’s lifecycle leadership development through programs like #BestSelf (teens); the statewide Young Women’s Initiative in partnership with IGNITE (college women); and networking groups like Nineteen (early to mid-career professionals) and the Executive Leadership Council. Each year, TXWF recognizes outstanding women leaders at its Leadership Forum & Awards Celebration. This year’s event will take place on Thursday, May 8, 2025, at the Dallas Omni and will honor five recipients of the Maura “Women Helping Women” Awards and two Young Leaders. ...read more read less