BOSTON (AP) — State Treasurer Deb Goldberg says she wants Massachusetts to lead the nation in narrowing the wage gap between men and women.
Goldberg is planning to announce today a new statewide, public-private sector advisory committee to come up with ideas to improve wage equality in Massachusetts.
Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh will serve as the committee’s honorary chairman.
Goldberg said pay inequality remains a top concern in the state.
She said women in Massachusetts earn just 82 cents on the dollar compared to men. The gap is wider for black women — who earn 61 cents on the dollar — and Latinas, who earn just 50 cents on the dollar.
“Pay equity is not a partisan issue, nor solely a women’s issue,” Goldberg said in a statement. “It is a family issue and it affects the economic health and well-being of our entire state.”
Goldberg outlined a handful of goals for the committee including:
— providing government agencies with tools to review their pay structures;
— developing a wage equity tool kit for businesses that want to address pay inequity;
— organizing a statewide conference and regional roundtables to hear from businesses, policymakers, and the public on the issue, and;
— launching a state-run equal pay website which will include a wage equality tool kit, information about the state’s wage gap, and a salary calculator that can be used by employers and workers.
Others serving on the advisory committee include Rep. Katherine Clark, former lieutenant governor and Babson College President Kerry Healey, and Bentley College President Gloria Larson.
