New Pink Power

Helping Women Survivors of War Rebuild their Lives

Women for Women International intends to change the world one woman at a time.  It provides women survivors of war, civil strife and other conflicts with the tools and resources to move from crisis and poverty to stability and self-sufficiency, thereby promoting viable civil societies.

Women for Women International works with socially excluded women in eight countries where war and conflict have devastated lives and communities. They enroll women in a one-year program, and provide them with job skills and business training so they can earn a living. They come to understand their rights and how to fight for those rights in their homes, their communities and their nations and become leaders.

Get Involved. Help a woman survivor of war rebuild her life. To make a donation go to https://mywomenforwomen.org/donation/donate-now.php?wfw=webgen

 

 

Climb Wyoming - Providing Free Training and Job Placement to Singe Mothers

Did you know that In Wyoming:

• Nearly half of the families living in poverty are headed by single mothers
• Almost half of the babies are born to mothers on medicaid
• Women earn an average of 60 cents for every dollar earned by men creating the largest wage disparity in the nation

An Non-Profit organization is trying to change that.  The uniquely comprehensive CLIMB program model was developed in 1986 to help move single mothers out of poverty - permanently. The program has helped over 1000 families reach self-sufficiency to date, the effects of which will be felt for generations.

To meet Wyoming's workforce needs, the CLIMB programs are helping women enter construction and energy trades as well health care, office careers and more.

The basis of the model is a job training and placement program – but there is more to permanent life change than finding a job. Other skills are needed – skills that ensure successful relationships on the job and in the home. Core to the model are mental health services that address personal barriers that have impeded success in the past.

They operate through grants and donations. We can all help.  To make a donation, go to http://climbwyoming.org/support.html.

 

 

A company that has figured out how to keep women in the workforce

One of the "model companies" worth highlighting when thinking about companies that put the right policies in place to keep women in the workforce, is PRINCIPAL FINANCIAL GROUP.  Click here to go to their site.

It has great perks such as flexible schedules, gyms, and an early-education center.  This is definitely one of the most female friendly comapnies in the country: nearly 2/3 of the employees are women.  Women hold 50% of the most senior positions, and 35% of directors are female (their industry average is 16%).

See full article at Fortune Magazine - Best Companies to work for.

Wouldn't the world be a better place if more companies were ensuring they had a better work environment for all employees, and not just for their "White boy club"?

UN-Equal pay for American Women

UN-Equal pay for American Women

Did you know that women are still making only 77 cents for every dollar earned by men in the same role with the same responsibilities? More than forty years ago, President Kennedy signed the Equal Pay Act (EPA) into law, making it illegal for employers to pay unequal wages to men and women who perform substantially equal work. The following year, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was enacted, making it illegal to discriminate, including in wages and pay, on the basis of sex, race, color, religion, and national origin. At the time of the EPA’s passage in 1963, women earned merely 59 cents to every dollar earned by men. Although enforcement of the EPA as well as other civil rights laws has helped to narrow the wage gap, significant disparities remain and need to be addressed.

Women in the United States are still paid only 77 cents for every dollar earned by men. And it is worse for women of color. African American women earn 63 cents and Latinas earn 52 cents for every dollar paid to white men.
 
An earnings gap exists between women and men across a wide spectrum of occupations. In 2006, the median weekly wages earned by women physicians were just 72% of the median weekly wages of male physicians. Women in sales and sales-related occupations earned only about 64% of the median weekly wages of men in equivalent positions. While the gap is narrower in some occupations, it is still substantial. Women in the construction industry, for example, earned median weekly wages that were only 86% of what their male counterparts earned. And women in computer and mathematical occupations had weekly earnings that were 85% of the wages paid their male counterparts.

In some occupations, women have actually lost ground. For example, in a study of management positions in 10 industries that together employ over 70% of women in the workforce, it was found that women managers consistently made less than their male counterparts; in seven of the 10 industries, the pay gap had increased between 1995 and 2000.

Unfortunately, the way courts have interpreted the Equal Pay Act is insufficient to remedy the persistence of wage disparities and demonstrates the need for stronger laws to ensure that women are paid equal wages for equal work.

CHANGE IS REQUIRED!!. Enactment of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, passed by the House of Representatives on July 31, 2007 and rejected by the Senate on 2008, could have started the necessary change. It could have helped to ensure that individuals subjected to unlawful pay discrimination are able to effectively assert their rights under the federal anti-discrimination laws.

WHAT CAN YOU DO? Contact your senators. (See how they voted below).

It’s important for your Senators to know that you are paying attention to these key votes.

If your Senator voted YES:
Call (202) 224-3121. The Capitol operator will connect you to your Senator's office. Please tell the person who answers the phone in your Senator's office the following:
I am a constituent. My name is ________.
I would like to thank the Senator for voting in support of moving forward on the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act.
I hope that the Senator will support the bill without amendments.

If your Senator voted NO:
Call (202) 224-3121. The Capitol operator will connect you to your Senator's office. Please tell the person who answers the phone in your Senator's office the following:
I am a constituent. My name is ________.
I am disappointed that the Senator voted against moving the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act forward.
I urge the Senator to reconsider his/her vote.

The Senate roll call vote was as follows:
Alabama: Sessions (R-AL), NO, Shelby (R-AL), NO
Alaska: Murkowski (R-AK), NO, Stevens (R-AK), NO
Arizona: Kyl (R-AZ), NO, McCain (R-AZ), Not Voting
Arkansas: Lincoln (D-AR), YES, Pryor (D-AR), YES
California: Boxer (D-CA), YES, Feinstein (D-CA), YES
Colorado: Allard (R-CO), NO, Salazar (D-CO), YES
Connecticut: Dodd (D-CT), YES, Lieberman (ID-CT), YES
Delaware: Biden (D-DE), YES, Carper (D-DE), YES
Florida: Martinez (R-FL), NO, Nelson (D-FL), YES
Georgia: Chambliss (R-GA), NO, Isakson (R-GA), NO
Hawaii: Akaka (D-HI), YES, Inouye (D-HI), YES
Idaho: Craig (R-ID), NO, Crapo (R-ID), NO
Illinois: Durbin (D-IL), YES, Obama (D-IL), YES
Indiana: Bayh (D-IN), YES, Lugar (R-IN), NO
Iowa: Grassley (R-IA), NO, Harkin (D-IA), YES
Kansas: Brownback (R-KS), NO, Roberts (R-KS), NO
Kentucky: Bunning (R-KY), NO, McConnell (R-KY), NO
Louisiana: Landrieu (D-LA), YES, Vitter (R-LA), NO
Maine: Collins (R-ME), YES, Snowe (R-ME), YES
Maryland: Cardin (D-MD), YES Mikulski (D-MD), YES
Massachusetts: Kennedy (D-MA), YES Kerry (D-MA), YES
Michigan: Levin (D-MI), YES, Stabenow (D-MI), YES
Minnesota: Coleman (R-MN), YES, Klobuchar (D-MN), YES
Mississippi: Cochran (R-MS), NO, Wicker (R-MS), NO
Missouri: Bond (R-MO), NO, McCaskill (D-MO), YES
Montana: Baucus (D-MT), YES, Tester (D-MT), YES
Nebraska: Hagel (R-NE), Not Voting, Nelson (D-NE), YES
Nevada: Ensign (R-NV), NO, Reid (D-NV) *
New Hampshire: Gregg (R-NH), NO, Sununu (R-NH), YES
New Jersey: Lautenberg (D-NJ), YES, Menendez (D-NJ), YES
New Mexico: Bingaman (D-NM), YES, Domenici (R-NM), NO
New York: Clinton (D-NY), YES, Schumer (D-NY), YES
North Carolina: Burr (R-NC), NO, Dole (R-NC), NO
North Dakota: Conrad (D-ND), YES, Dorgan (D-ND), YES
Ohio: Brown (D-OH), YES, Voinovich (R-OH), NO
Oklahoma: Coburn (R-OK), NO, Inhofe (R-OK), NO
Oregon: Smith (R-OR), YES, Wyden (D-OR), YES
Pennsylvania: Casey (D-PA), YES, Specter (R-PA), YES
Rhode Island: Reed (D-RI), YES, Whitehouse (D-RI), YES
South Carolina: DeMint (R-SC), NO, Graham (R-SC), NO
South Dakota: Johnson (D-SD), YES, Thune (R-SD), NO
Tennessee: Alexander (R-TN), NO, Corker (R-TN), NO
Texas: Cornyn (R-TX), NO, Hutchison (R-TX), NO
Utah: Bennett (R-UT), NO, Hatch (R-UT), NO
Vermont: Leahy (D-VT), YES, Sanders (I-VT), YES
Virginia: Warner (R-VA), NO, Webb (D-VA), YES
Washington: Cantwell (D-WA), YES, Murray (D-WA), YES
West Virginia: Byrd (D-WV), YES, Rockefeller (D-WV), YES
Wisconsin: Feingold (D-WI), YES, Kohl (D-WI), YES
Wyoming: Barrasso (R-WY), NO, Enzi (R-WY), NO
*Senator Reid is a strong supporter of the bill, but for technical reasons he had to vote No. As Senate Majority Leader, this will enable him to bring the bill up at another time.