CalChamber President Underscores Support for Equal Pay Pledge

On National Equal Pay Day last week, CalChamber President and CEO Jennifer Barrera joined California First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom and others at an event highlighting strategies for companies to create more equitable workplaces by identifying and eliminating internal wage gaps.

More than 200 California-based companies, organizations and municipalities — including the California Chamber of Commerce — have signed the California Equal Pay Pledge. That number is more than double the number of Pledge signatories on Equal Pay Day in 2023, First Partner Siebel Newsom announced at this year’s March 12 gathering.

First Partner Siebel Newsom, in partnership with the California Partners Project, also released the Equal Pay Playbook, which outlines six steps employers can follow to achieve equitable pay. The steps include conducting an internal pay equity audit and updating job descriptions and pay structure.

Also available are case studies and ways to tailor steps to match budgets.

“Women are the backbone of their communities and the economy and the breadwinner or co-breadwinner in most households in the U.S., yet the gender wage gap continues to deliver the message that our work and our contributions have less value than men’s,” said First Partner Siebel Newsom, co-founder of the California Partners Project.

“While data on the wage gap may differ, it all tells the same story of inequality and a gap in pay that worsens for women of color, mothers, immigrant women, and LGBTQ+ women, ultimately deepening generational poverty and slowing economic mobility. The Equal Pay Playbook is one element of our gender equity strategy, giving companies the tools to close the gap and normalize equal pay in the workplace,” she said.

CalChamber pay equity resources include a white paper on HRCalifornia and podcast on employer best practices.