April 2017 | Equal Pay Day Press Conference
Each year VCW joins other women’s organizations to observe Equal Pay Day, symbolizing how far into the new year the average American woman would have to work to earn what the average American man did in the previous year due to the gender wage gap. 2017 events at the State House included an Equal Pay Day “Women and Leadership” press conference, unveiling the latest report of the same name by our partnership initiative Change The Story VT.. The report revealed new data participation of women in various leadership roles, including federal, state, and municipal government, Abenaki Nations, academia, law enforcement, and the corporate and non-profit sectors. By some measures, Vermont was a national pacesetter in its share of women in key leadership positions. By others, women’s leadership status lagged behind other states. Featured speakers in this press conference video: Speaker of the House Mitzi Johnson, State Treasurer Beth Pearce, Vermont Tech President Pat Moulton, Melody Brook of the Abenaki Women's Council and the VT Commission on Native American Affairs, Joe Fusco of UVM's Grossman School of Business and VP at Casella Waste Systems, Jen Kimmich Co-founder/Owner of The Alchemist, and VCW Executive Director, Cary Brown. Members of Women’s Caucus of the Legislature, the League of Women Voters of VT, VT Federation of Business and Professional Women joined the group of approximately 100 present. Advocates wore the traditional red to symbolize women being “in the red” due to the gender wage gap on Equal Pay Day.