The Church and the Wage Gap
I’ve mentioned before that everyone (especially guys) should be reading Ms. Magazine. The main reason is that it brings up a lot of issues that need to be addressed that aren’t being mentioned in major media. Issues such as sex discrimination, abuse, mistreatment, and the wage gap. These are issues that should be dealt with in our society, and particularly in the church.
So, how can we as a church begin to address these issues? I thought I’d start by taking the six points from an article entitled, Mind the Wage Gap, from the fall 2005 issue of Ms. and discuss these as they relate to the church, rather then to the individual reader.
- Document
- Do the Research
- Collaborate
- Learn to Negotiate
- Talk to the Boss
- Celebrate!
1. Document- As I said in an early post on the wage gap, I think there is some compelling reasons to make our salaries known. Particularly the fact that keeping it a secret has kept us from addressing the fact that women make 70 cents on the $1 that every man makes. I’m not sure of the most appropriate way to do it, but I think we should have more open conversation and documenting of what we are making in our churches. This has other implications, but as it relates to the wage gap, knowing what others in your field make will help you be aware of if you are being unfairly paid. Documenting also means letting it be known when you feel you were mistreated or unfairly dealt with as it relates to your wage. If any place should be a safe haven and a place to share those things, it should be the church.
2. Do the Research- This also deals a lot with investigating wages within your field and if you are being appropriately paid. Doing this research individually is fine, but I would imagine a church would be a wonderful central location for the results of research concerning wages could be held.
3. Collaborate- Caring after the orphans and widows has to do with a lot more then providing them clothing and shelter (though that’s good too). Sunday School and Soup Kitchens are good things, but wouldn’t it be amazing to see the church as a collaborating force to ensure women were treated and paid fairly? If ever a person would be distressed, it’s when they are being discriminated against, harassed, paid unfairly, or worse. The church, as a unified body, is just the sort of location and group to help address these sorts of situations.
4. Learn to Negotiate- Again, what better place to learn this then in the church. At the least, Churches should be resources centers for this sort of information. If someone had concerns about their unfair treatment at work, the church should be able to provide contact information and resources for learning how to negotiate, rather then just an offer to pray for the person.
5. Talk to the Boss- Probably the most intimidating and daunting task of the six steps for most people. Especially for single-income households, talking to your boss about your pay, or any acknowledgment of being unsatisfied with work, can be a very scary task as there is probably a great fear of getting fired. Once again, the church has an important role in this step. The churches role is to be a supportive and loving body in the midst of injustice. So, not only do we help empower and prepare people to ask for equal wages, we are also there to support them should their demands be met with resistance. It’s much easier to stand strong against mistreatment and discrimination if you have a loving supportive community around you.
6. Celebrate!- I’d urge churches to have Wage Parties, or maybe Against Injustice parties. When my house mate paid off his last school loan and became debt free, we had a celebratory party. It was a beautiful thing. Like a celebration after finding a lost coin or sheep, we should celebrate when unjustly stolen salaries have been given back. The church should be a place of praise and celebration, for fair wages as much as anything else.
Considering the discrimination involved in the hiring, advancement and wages of female church employees, its seems that the overwhelming majority of churches would need to get the log out of their own eye before broaching this subject for the outside world.
I like the idea of sharing salaries. Actually my current job does just that (as does any Department of Defense job). Anyone in the world can look up my salary to the penny if they wanted to, and I think that’s the way it should be…
Entering into a job is a 2 way agreement. No one is forced to take an underpaying job, regardless of sex, race, or anything else. So, when someone agrees to work for a certain wage, why should it matter what anyone else makes? By agreeing they are saying that they are willing to perform service X for wage Y. If that’s ok with them, great! If not, they can decline the offer and look elsewhere.
If we saw 2 lemonade stands on the same street, one charging 5 cents/cup and the other 10 cents/cup, would we say that it’s unfair that one stand is receiving less money for the same thing? Of course not. They decided 5 cents was a fair price, so they’re happy selling their product for that price
For a non-trivial example, check out Matthew 20…A bunch of workers started working at different times and all got paid the same thing. The ones who had worked longest complained, but the response was basically “you have nothing to complain about! We agreed on a wage and you received it. Don’t worry about what I agreed on with the other workers.”
I guess my point is that in a capitalist society, we have the ability to negotiate our own wage. Why should it matter what others make?
By the way - the same Department of Labor statistics show that for part-time jobs, men make less than women…
Hmm, I just submitted a huge long comment and it disappeared into cyberspace somewhere…Well, here’s the summary:
In a capitalist society where we have the ability to negotiate our own wage, why should it matter what anyone else makes? We enter into an agreement with our employer which says that we will do X for Y money. If we aren’t happy with it, we are free to go elsewhere. If we are happy, then other’s salaries don’t matter.
This brings to mind Matt 20 - the parable of the vineyard workers. People start working at all times of the day, but all get paid the same. The people who worked the longest complain, but the employers response is basically “you have nothing to complain about! We had a deal and you were happy with it. It’s none of your business what deal I made with these other people.”
For a more trivial example, if there are 2 lemonade stands on the same street, one selling for 10 cents/cup and the other for 15 cents/cup, would we say that the 10 cents/cup people are being treated unfairly? Of course not. They set a price that they thought was fair and are probably getting more business because of it.
With that said, though, I’m all for sharing salaries. In fact my current job (and any job for the department of defense) does that. Anyone in the world can look up my salary to the penny if they wanted…
Brian said, “No one is forced to take an underpaying job, regardless of sex, race, or anything else.”
I disagree. If there is a choice between putting food on the table or going without you’re going to take what you can get. If women are only being offered lower paying jobs they can’t hold out forever. They have to pay their bills. And when wages are shrouded in secrecy, how is a woman supposed to know if her boss is lying when he says that his salary offer is as high as he can go? And even if she knows that he’s lying, what is she supposed to do about it?
That fact is women start out in the work place with better credentials than men but they get lower salaries. Paying a woman less just because she is a woman is discrimination. Its wrong. And if white guys like you with all of the privilege in this country are unwilling to stand up for us then discrimination will continue.
In the passage you reference Jesus is saying that in his kingdom you no longer get wages based on your status i.e. free Jewish male. Now Jew and Greek, slave and free, male and female are equal in the kingdom. Jews were saying, “Hey, we’ve been your people all along, we’ve “worked” longer, why are the newbie Gentiles getting the same thing that we’re getting?” The parable is the opposite of how you’re using it. It is saying that the marginalized will get the same reward from God. It is most certainly not upholding a discriminatory capitalist system.
not really jumping in to this discussion right now–thanks for bringing it up and we just started getting ms. magazine (picked it up at the green festival). it’s pretty sweet!
I completely agree with Indie! Very well said. : )
Great topic, Ariah. We definately need to start showing that we care about these sorts of things in the Church.
Peace,
Jamie
Melissa,
Awesome that your getting Ms. Magazine! It really is good, even if you find you don’t agree with some perspectives it’s a powerful awareness raising mag.
Jamie, thanks for the encouragement, I love bringing up things that others resonate with.
Indie and Brian, I hope this conversation continues, I think you both have valuable and wise things to say.
Awesome Stuff Man!
Well Said. Nice site man, you may not remember me but i’m the guy who publishes inspirationalexperiences.
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