Cuomo calls for study of NY’s gender pay gap
Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, seen in 2015, announced Tuesday, April 4, 2017 that the state Labor Department will study the state's gender pay gap and recommend ways to close it. Credit: AP / Mike Groll
New national research from a Washington, D.C.-based advocacy group shows that while New York has one of the smallest gender pay gaps in the nation, women in the state still earn just 89 cents for every dollar that men are paid. And Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo announced Tuesday that the state will study the reasons for the disparity and its economic impact.
The governor has directed the Labor Department to study the pay gap and to make recommendations on how to close it. Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul and Labor Commissioner Roberta Reardon will co-chair the study.
New York will hold at least four public hearings across the state to solicit testimony from academics, workers and business owners who want to offer solutions. Written testimony can be sent to payequity@labor.ny.gov and must be received before June. 1
An analysis released Monday by the National Partnership for Women & Families shows the gap amounts to a wage loss of about $5,916 a year for New York women who work full time.
And for minorities in the state, the pay disparity is even greater. Black women in New York earn 66 cents for every dollar paid to non-Hispanic white men. Latina women earn 56 cents.
Nationally, women were paid 80 cents for every dollar that men earned.
New York and Delaware tied for the smallest pay disparity.
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