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Rally urges action to close the pay gap that Latinas experience

Monroe County Legislature President Yversha Roman looks on as Annette Ramos, executive director of Rochester Latino Theatre, discusses inequities faced by Latino arts organizations.
Jeremy Moule
/
WXXI News
Monroe County Legislature President Yversha Roman looks on as Annette Ramos, executive director of Rochester Latino Theatre, discusses inequities faced by Latino arts organizations.

On average, Latinas make 59 cents on the dollar compared to their non-Hispanic white male counterparts.

Thursday was Latina Pay Equity Day, a date that symbolizes how far into the year Latinas, on average, must work to earn the same pay their non-Hispanic white male counterparts earned in the previous year.

During a rally at International Plaza on North Clinton Avenue in Rochester, speakers sought to draw attention to that disparity and they emphasized that the pay gap is not only bad for workers, but for the community as well.

"These lifetime losses rob us of the opportunity to invest in our education, homeownership and plan for retirement," said Roxana Siaca, an organizer with the Worker Justice Center of New York. "The long-term impact on morale, individual health, and well-being is devastating."

Yversha Roman, president of the Monroe County Legislature and a cofounder of the Pay Equity Coalition, echoed Siaca.

"A lot of people say, you know, this doesn't affect us," Roman said, "but it affects our children when they are living in poverty due to the disparities of pay."

The rally also included calls to action. Speakers urged lawmakers to pass key equal pay legislation, and they called on community members to press for those measures.

Jackie Ortiz, the Democratic elections commissioner for Monroe County and a former member of Rochester City Council, said the cause needs support from every ally possible, but it especially needs support from Latinas.

"Together, we can create real change, but that change certainly begins with ourselves," Ortiz said. "This does not just affect Latina women. It affects all women, our sisters, African American women."

More information on Latina pay disparities is available at latinapayequity.com.

Jeremy Moule is a deputy editor with WXXI News. He also covers Monroe County.