Taking a stand on the gender pay gap will benefit all of your workers

Despite so much change in the workforce and to the economy over the last year, the gender wage gap hasn't changed at all. And women are the ones who pay. 

Women still earn 82 cents per dollar that men make in 2022, and that figure was the same in 2021, according to Payscale's State of the Gender Pay Gap Report. But with millions of women looking for opportunities to return to the workforce, companies that aren't moving the needle forward are going to fall behind. 

"With everything that's happened in just the last couple of years, you want to be at a spot where you're driving a diverse workforce," says Irina Soriano, author and vice president of enablement at software platform Seismic. "If any woman gets the sense that's not the case, you're not going to be a desired place to work." 

Read more: How this company reduced its gender pay gap in one year

Women left the workforce in droves during the pandemic, and their labor force participation hasn't bounced back as quickly as that of their male counterparts. And when they do return, their wages and salary focus too much on their time out of the office, penalizing them further, Soriano says. 

Irina Soriano, TEDx speaker, author and VP at Seismic

"We already know it's a problem when women go out for child care, they lose experience depending on how long they're out, and their salary and wages are impacted," she says. "Women coming back will start at lower levels than they were before. They'll have that gap on their resume. Companies need to look at how they're paying women — are they paying them based on the responsibility they're taking on, or based on what they made before?" 

Read more: To get women back to work, throw out your resume requirements 

In addition to pay, employers can also prioritize flexibility to help women find the right fit. Time is money, Soriano says, and women need the option of flexibility if they want to succeed at both work and home. 

"Flexibility around work schedules plays into this, too — women might need more flexibility when coming back to work," Soriano says. "Do you have remote work options? Do you have a hybrid model? Flexible work plays into it just as much as the salary component does right now." 

While pay and time are tactile ways to provide support, mentorship can help women create pathways for themselves in the workplace. Soriano says that a mandated mentoring program for both male and female employees can help workers advance and be given guidance throughout their career — something she's benefitted from personally. 

Read more: Why sponsorship is better than mentorship in women's careers

"I'm a VP right now, and having somebody above me is incredibly helpful overall," she says. "Throughout my entire career, I only had male mentors and they have significantly impacted my confidence level, they've significantly helped me to go for opportunities and put myself out there to ask for what I deserve. It doesn't necessarily have to be women in a mentorship relationship." 

Those efforts need to be advertised — both with employees and on social media, Soriano recommends. Not only will this hold employers accountable for making changes that will benefit women, and all employees, but it will show the world your organization is a good place to work. 

"Companies need to step out and talk about the efforts around pay equality. Social media is the best place to do that because they can reach a lot of people," she says. "That can also inspire employees to talk about the effort companies are making. In the end, that's important because corporations can go out and say a lot, but the people who work at a company need to feel that this is real."