Commemorating Equal Pay Day

On March 25, 2025, we commemorate Equal Pay Day, a day established by the National Committee on Pay Equity to highlight the pay differential for working women in this country.

Equal Pay Day was predicated by the Equal Pay Act of 1963, which was signed into law by President John F. Kennedy to abolish wage disparity based on sex at a time when women were making 59 cents on the dollar compared to men. By the early 1990s, almost 30 years later, women were only making 72 cents on the dollar. The National Committee on Pay Equity sought to raise public awareness of this wage gap and in 1996 launched Equal Pay Day. 

Currently, when compared to men, women in this country make 83 cents on the dollar. This gender pay gap also varies significantly among different communities and is even lower for women of color. Women in medicine are not at parity either, making even less than the national average, at 75 cents on the dollar when compared to men. This year's Equal Pay Day highlights the need for continued efforts toward pay equity within our healthcare workforce.  

These upcoming "Equal Pay Days" will honor the need for additional impact to the following communities:

• Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) Women’s Equal Pay Day – April 7
• Moms’ Equal Pay Day – May 6
• LGBTQIA+ Equal Pay Awareness Day – June 17
• Black Women’s Equal Pay Day – July 10
• Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (NHPI) Women’s Equal Pay Day – Aug. 28
• Latina Equal Pay Day – Oct. 8
• Disabled Women’s Equal Pay Day – Oct. 23
• Native Women’s Equal Pay Day – Nov. 18

UC Irvine continues to support equal pay and is committed to raising awareness, improving salary transparency, increasing support and flexibility for childbearing and child-rearing, supporting lactation, and advancing leaders within our community.

Sincerely,
Ursula Worsham, EdD
Diversity Officer, UC Irvine School of Medicine

Nimisha K. Parekh, MD
Associate Dean, Faculty Development

Sheetal Desai, MD, MSEd
Chair of Medicine, Interim