Pay equality
Posted by Lizzie on Sep-5-2008There’s a lot of talk about women’s issues this election cycle. Thanks to Hillary Clinton, and now Sarah Palin, we’re back in the spotlight. In that vein, Congress is pressing for a revote on the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which failed to pass previously. McCain has come out again it:
“I am all in favor of pay equity for women, but this kind of legislation, as is typical of what’s being proposed by my friends on the other side of the aisle, opens us up to lawsuits for all kinds of problems,” the expected GOP presidential nominee told reporters. “This is government playing a much, much greater role in the business of a private enterprise system.”
I’ve recently engaged in a half-hearted IT job search - in anticipation of my eventual graduation from the Tech program. There seems to be a little available, but I’ve heard that women are not treated favorably in the IT industry. It would please me, and thousands of other women, tremendously if this actually became law. Would I know that my male counterparts were making more than me? Probably not. But this act would give me recourse should I find out about a pay discrepancy after the fact. As a woman hoping to work in a male-dominated field, I would feel just a little better knowing I had a safety net.
There was some talk that this law isn’t necessary. I beg to differ. I worked with a company (unrelated to the tech field) that cut me a mystery check. When I inquired to what the purpose of the check was, I was told that it was to make up for a pay difference between me and my male counterparts. I had no idea that the men were making that much more per hour than I was, but there was a lawsuit and the settlement agreement was that this company would pay the hourly difference to each female for whatever period of time they agreed to (I think it was 3 months, even though I’d been there for over a year at that point). I left that company not long afterward, but my eyes had been opened. The reasoning for the lower pay was that women are mothers and so are prone to miss work because of their sick children. Men, on the other hand, are more reliable and should be rewarded. Really?
At a time when a major political party has nominated a self-proclaimed “hockey mom” to be vice president, there should be no more “she should get less because she’s a mom”. This woman is seeking a job while parenting 5 children (and potentially helping parent a grandchild) so the reason listed above would apply to her and her pay should be cut significantly. Right? No. Wrong. Her husband will be able to tend to the children while she runs for office and he can tend to the children while she continues to govern Alaska (except that he’s got a full-time job plus an extra job on the side in the summer, but that’s not this issue). It’s only fair that the rest of American women enjoy the same equality in pay as the women who govern them.
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[...] But I got to thinking recently about the whole link-loving thing. I guess sometimes I forget how hard it seems in the first few months of blogging to get attention, traffic and those coveted links. Certainly, on my “Overdue Link Love” posts I try to spread the luv around. But then I read a post today by a woman I don’t even know, named Lizzie. And it moved me. [...]
Hey Lizzie,
No worries, girl. Write what you want, about what you want and be clear about the result you want. It’ll work itself out.
I’ve visited some of those sites with high PR. Many of them have such crappy writing, I’ll never go back.
Did the sites that rejected you for paid blogging mention why?
Just curious. I know when I was a new, and impatient “professional” blogger (as opposed to one who wrote for friends & fun) it seemed like an eternity to get approved by Pay-Per-Post, but once I understood why they rejected me, I was able to do a minor fix and get in.
If I can help you, in any way, let me know.
Sincerely,
Meg Meyer
http://www.centerofmuse.com
http://businesscoach.bellaonline.com
Hi, Meg!
Thanks for coming back.
I’m not too concerned about that though. In time, in time. I was just impatient.
I was rejected because I’m still too new. My PR is abysmal and no one’s heard of me yet. I think I was rejected by everyone except one that I found out later may or may not actually pay.
But I was just floored that someone would actually say “Don’t bother linking to me if you are below a PR 3.” Amazing! I would understand about a spammer site doing the trackback thing, or something. But to reject honest links? Bah!
So, I’m going to stop worrying about making money (from here anyway) and concentrate on the writing.
Don’t give up! Hang in there!
If you write quality content and build up a large amount of return traffic, then you’ll make money off of the ads on your site.
If those other blogs and ad programs don’t want you then forget them! There are too many other good quality programs available.
Keep on heading for your goals, please don’t let a couple shallow people/companies influence your decision.
Hi, Wendy!
Thanks for taking the time to comment.
I’m not giving up. Just rethinking. Looking more distant than “right now”, I guess. I believe I was going about it all wrong and that little incident just brought me back to reality.
By the way, I love your site. You do excellent work. I’ll most certainly be visiting you again.
[...] I’ve been reading a few posts lately about sites only linking to other sites that have great Google PR. (for those of you who are new to this whole web thing, I’ve included a glossary here) Wendy Piersall shares her opinion on that very subject here, and Lizzie shows how PR silliness can make you want to quit trying to monetize your blog here. [...]
If PayPerPost is one that says you are too new - They require a 90 day history & no gaps over 7 days. It used to be 20. So, just keep a good schedule & you’ll be in there.
I’ve had some good $$ posts from them & they pay 30 days after you post. And they have ops that don’t require PR or Alexa rank. It’s a good, regular source.
I keep trying more monetization sites, just to see. But PPP seems to work best for where I am now.
If you find one you like, give a gal a heads-up, k?
Meg
Absolutely! I don’t know if any will like me yet, but I’ll definitely let you know.
Hi Lizzie,
Welcome to the blogosphere! I feel your pain - it is definitely hard to get started. They say content is king, but perseverance is also important. Hanging in there is the hard part.
Hi Lizzie, I find your blog via e-moms.
I think it’s terrible that someone could be so rude about linking to you, after all, everyone has to start somewhere. I’ve added you to my blogroll - under writing, hope that’s ok.
Hi, Neena and Kate! Welcome and thanks for stopping by.
Neena,
I’m definitely going to keep truckin’. I’ve just rethought my goals regarding my blog.
Kate,
Thanks for the add! Of course it’s ok.
I really appreciate it. I’ve added you as well.
[...] Experiment Failed [...]