Go get your almost equal pay

It’s an open secret in the nonprofit sector that it’s a pink collar ghetto.

We have the lowest wages of the entire USA.

underpaid chart for nonprofit workers — Chart courtesy of reader survey on blue avocado 2010

It’s bad in Canada too. See below.

Lower than the public sector. Lower than the private sector. Lower than anyone.

AND THEN THERE’S THIS PROBLEM.

75% of our sector is female.

Guess how much money women make compared to men in the US in 2018?

White women make 90 cents on the dollar. That’s just for paid labor. Not for unpaid labor, at home, taking care of family, or children. Not for doing emotional labor in their relationships. Not for all of the other labor they are expected to do, for free.

It gets worse though, when you break that down by race.

WELL THE NUMBERS ARE NOT GOOD. LET’S JUST SAY THAT.

Clearly, working hard to get ahead is not the answer. Being born a white man is a much more likely indicator of getting a higher salary.

So here we are. In the middle of a society that says it has low unemployment. That says it is a meritocracy.

RIIIIIGHT.

WHY do we accept such low wages? Why do people persist in thinking that we in fact, deserve low wages?

Dan Pallotta has written about this at length. I summed up one of his books with the post “No life, no liberty, just the pursuit of wealthy donors” He’s also featured on RE:Philanthropy.

And what can we do about this pernicious and awful thoughtform that destroys our health, our lives, and our ability to save for retirement, a house, to pay off student debt, or ANYTHING?

The Decent Work Movement in Ontario, Canada by the Ontario Nonprofit Network is working on this problem. They are doing research. They are working on advocacy and legislation. And pension plans. Here’s my interview with Pamela Uppal, with more.

But what can we do HERE, NOW in the US?

If you want a raise right now, let’s talk about how to get you one.

Share how much you make with your colleagues. Ask them how much they make. Here’s why. Stop this strange idea that it’s “vulgar” to talk about money. The only person who benefits from everyone being ignorant of each others’ salaries is your employer.
Is it in line with the average? Look at Salary.com (in the US) or the Charity Village Salary survey (in Canada) to see if what you are making is in line with the average in your job title and geographic area. Even if it is in line with the average, it is still going to be too low, for the reasons mentioned above. SO.
Consider having a simple conversation with your boss that goes “What are the metrics I would need to hit in the next 6 months to justify you giving me a raise?”