Hillary Clinton on playing the gender card: 'Deal me in'

Glassdoor

In honor of Equal Pay Day, jobs site Glassdoor hosted a roundtable discussion on pay equality featuring Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton in New York City on Tuesday.

In her opening remarks, the Democratic presidential candidate said: "Occasionally, when I give a speech like this — which I do practically every day — people will say, 'Oh, there she goes, she's playing the gender card.'"

Clinton continued: "What I say to that is, if talking about equal pay, and paid leave, and more opportunities for women and girls is playing the gender card, then deal me in."

Not everyone wants to talk or hear about the gender pay gap, Clinton told the audience, and there's a lot of "misinformation" out there.

But research, including a new study by Glassdoor, abounds showing that women in every industry, in almost every occupation, are paid, on average, less than men.

By raising the minimum wage, raising the minimum tipped wage, passing paid family leave
 legislation, passing the Paycheck Fairness Act, encouraging pay transparency, and recognizing that "most people work to live, not live to work," Clinton said the country could see equal pay become a reality — but not before more people join in the conversation.

Glassdoor

"I think that, to some extent, we are starting a conversation which very much goes to: Okay, if it's fair to talk about women's choices, then we also need to talk about employer's choices and how the money is distributed in order to support choices that are made in the workplace," she said.

"A lot of people are feeling economically stressed. So this is not a luxury anymore; it's a necessity. And it's not about somebody else; it's about you, your family, and what you can expect to be able to afford for your future."

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