Join 9to5 GA for a Digital Day of Action on March 4! This virtual lobby day will focus on supporting the passage of HB55, which would ban employers from requesting a prospective employee’s salary history.  Women and POCs are still paid less for doing the same jobs as their white, male counterparts— salary histories reflect that disparity and allow unequal pay to continue throughout people’s careers. Salary history bans are a proven and effective way to push pay equity forward for women. 

How can you participate?

On Thursday, March 4 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., send emails, take to social media, and call your representatives to ask them to support pay equity legislation.

From 9AM-11AM, we’re want you all to educate your legislators on the need for pay equity in Georgia and ask them to support HB 55. You can email your lawmakers via our Action Network letter campaign page HERE. 

From 11AM to 3PM, amplify the message on your social media. We’ve provided sample graphics and social media text (see below), but you can also feel free create your own! Use the hashtags #gapol, #HB55, and/or #GAPayEquity in your posts and tag us if you’d like!

We’ll be hosting a virtual Grassroots Advocacy Lunch & Learn Training (You Voted, Now What?) from noon-1PM. 9to5′ GAs lobbyist, Yosha Dotson, will answer all your questions about how to engage with legislators and best practices in advocating for issues important to you. Please register for this event HERE.

From 3PM-5PM, please call Chairman Bill Werkheiser (404-656-5132) and ask him to support pay equity legislation and request that HB 55 get a hearing.

If you need to deviate from this timeline, don’t worry — we just want this message to go out soon and to be amplified as much as possible during the session!

Who should you contact?

All of your lawmakers need to hear this message. Individuals should reach out to their state senator and state representative. You can find out who your local lawmakers are here. Industry & Labor Committee members have particular power when it comes to consideration of HB55. You can find a list of committee members here.

What should your talking points be?

  • Women and people of color have historically been paid less for doing the same jobs as their white, male counterparts— salary histories reflect that disparity and invite the opportunity to let unequal pay continue throughout people’s careers.
  • Banning salary history questions from the hiring process would reduce the probability that women would have to negotiate from a lower starting point than their male counterparts, and would make it possible for women to enter negotiations on a level playing field.
  • To date, 17 states, including our neighbors Alabama and North Carolina, have enacted some form of the salary history ban. There is a clear need to address pay inequity in this country, and Georgia should be on par with other states.
  • Knowing that a job applicant is currently underpaid, some employers take advantage and offer a bit more than the applicant’s current pay level, confident that they will accept.
  • In Georgia, women earn 82 cents on the dollar vs men and the gap is even larger for women of color. This can be addressed by enacting a salary history ban.
  • The effects of COVID-19 are devastating for women, with over 5.4 million jobs lost last year. Banning salary histories will help women get back on their feet in the future.

Sample Social Media Posts

Facebook

In GA, women earn 82 cents for every dollar earned by men. Pay equity should be a priority for our state — ask your legislators to support fair salary practices and #HB55 today: http://9to5.org/ga-day-of-action

Basing compensation on past salary history perpetuates a cycle of wage discrimination for women and POCs, who have been historically underpaid. Ask your legislators to pass HB55 so that employers would be prohibited from asking salary history questions during the interview process. http://9to5.org/ga-day-of-action

Twitter

Break the cycle of unfair wages! #PayEquity legislation like #HB55 should be a priority for our lawmakers during this session. http://9to5.org/ga-day-of-action #gapol

It can be almost impossible to catch up if you start your career making less than others in the same position as you. Ask your legislators to support #HB55, so that everyone has a chance to negotiate their pay on equal footing: http://9to5.org/ga-day-of-action . #GAPayEquity

Passing #HB55 would help Georgia move one step closer to achieving #payequity. #EqualPayForEqualWork #gapol Find out more here: http://9to5.org/ga-day-of-action

Sample Graphics

Feel free to use these graphics alongside your social media posts! You can download the images (sized for Facebook and Twitter sharing) from the gallery below.

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For images sized for Instagram, you can download graphics from the gallery below.

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