CHARLESTON, W.Va. — In advance of introducing the Equal Pay Act of 2016 in the legislature Friday, an “Unhappy Hour” event was held in downtown Charleston Thursday night to bring attention to unequal pay between the sexes in West Virginia.
The promotion charged women 70 percent of the cost of drinks at Sam’s Uptown Cafe from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., to bring awareness to women earning roughly 30 percent less than their male counterparts.
A study released, entitled “Status of Women in West Virginia”, claimed women earn 67 cents on the dollar “compared with similarly employed men.”
“We’ve had a big wage gap in the whole country for years, and it’s gradually getting smaller,” said Del. Barbara Evans Fleischauer (D-Monongalia). “The wage gap in West Virginia is one of the largest in the country. Women (here) make two-thirds of what men make.”
She was grateful to Sam’s for hosting the event, which she said called attention to the discrepancy.
“One of the neat things about this unhappy hour is we get paid less and we’re getting charged less,” she said. “That’s the focus of this little action tonight.”
She described the bipartisan legislation being introduced on the issue.
“We have a Republican as the lead sponsor, Erikka Storch (R-District 3), and several Republicans and Democrats on the bill,” Evans Fleischauer said. “All the bill says is that you’re allowed to talk about your wages. It’s kind of a First Amendment issue.”
Evans Fleischauer said the wage gap puts women at a huge disadvantage in the Mountain State.
“We earn less so we don’t have as much buying power,” she said. “We still have to pay the rent, we still have to buy cars and we’re handicapped because women make so much less money.”