March is Women's History Month! I am all about commemorating women's achievements. Like Black History Month, the celebration of women should be yearlong. We are awesome and most days, I love being a woman. There are some days that being a woman is infuriating. Reading and hearing about pay disparities, lack of job promotions and inflexible work schedules makes being a woman harder than it should be. I enjoy a good campaign and am extremely fond of engaging content highlighting women's accomplishments but if companies want to celebrate and show their appreciation for women in a practical way then they should examine and implement policies that close the gender pay gap and foster a culture for women to move up in rank and salary.

According to the Institute for Women's Policy Research, women make up nearly half of the workforce. Women also have more degrees than men; however, women still earn less. When you break those statistics down by race, Black women earn 63 cents for every dollar a white man is paid. While White, Asian and Hispanic women have benefitted from an increase in earnings, Black women's earnings have declined. Of all races, Hispanic women are still earning the least. This seems to be a Pan-African Diaspora problem. *sigh*

As a Black woman, raised by a Black woman and working with Black women daily, I see the consequences of the discrepancy in pay play out in real life. Young activist Malala Yousafzai once said "we cannot all succeed when half us are held back". This is true. I would extend that in saying we cannot all succeed when any of us are held back. This week I attended a ColorComm program that brought in Human Resource professionals. When the floor was opened to audience questions I asked the panel for advice on salary inquiry and negotiation during the interview/hiring process. HR professionals are the gatekeepers for their companies and they have the company's interest first. Jobseekers in the market looking to make a jump in salary are always trying to figure out the maximum compensation allowed. Jobseekers fear reporting their current salary because they don't want to get lowballed or taken advantage of when going after a new opportunity. Panelists from Sirius XM and NPR stated that since New York forbids companies from asking about current salary then it is not asked in any of their other states. Another representative stated that she leaves room for negotiation and more often then not women, particularly women of color won't negotiate. Why is that? From previous conversations with peers and colleagues, I've been told they didn't negotiate because they didn't want to risk losing the job OR they were weary of being labeled "difficult" before they even started. That says a lot about the burdens that Black women carry. We accept less than our worth because we've been conditioned to be grateful and not rock the boat.

When women are underpaid it doesn't just affect them as individuals, often it affects entire families and future generations. Leaving an additional $25k on the table could be the difference in simply getting by or paying off student loan debt, saving, investing and buying property. It can be the difference in taking out a loan for your child's education or paying out-of-pocket. Businesses should feel it's their duty to compensate people equally regardless of race or gender.  If your budget is more than the desired salary requested, give the candidate a little more. Companies wanting to retain talented women have the same obligation. Create programs that cultivate mentorship, sponsorship and upward career paths. If an opportunity is available within the same company with an increase in salary, let women explore and grow in your company. Hard work and loyalty are qualities that should be rewarded. No company should want to be a revolving door. Ultimately, we all play a part in each other's success. If you want to truly celebrate women, invest in them!

-Bee.

As a member of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA), I receive weekly emails on industry news and the occasional letter from PRSA's national chair, Anthony D'Angelo. This evening I read Anthony's PRSAY post on diversity and inclusion in the public relations industry and some of the information provided confirmed what many people have been saying for years - the public relations industry is whitewashed. A couple of weeks ago I started using the hashtag #NetworkingWhileBlack. I attended an event for American Advertising Federation (AAF) and there were maybe 5 people of color in a room of about 80 people. I was disappointed and frustrated. I was disappointed because this is DC, why are there so few people of color at these networking events and in these professional organizations? I was frustrated because I know firsthand how hard it is to move ahead on sheer talent and hard work. In these moments I think about another edge that people are getting making these connections while so many others are being left out. I've asked friends, peers and colleagues have they had the same experience of being an "only" or "one of few" at their respective industry conferences, meetups, symposiums, etc. and they all had a story. In Anthony's post he stated that at PRSA's National Assembly last October, there was ONE Black person in a room of approximately 250 delegates. 1 out of 250! That's not surprising but again, disappointing. Where are all of the Black people at the networking events that are not affinity-driven? When I spoke with other people, a frequent response was their job either didn't pay for professional development or their job was "stingy" with professional development. My job falls in the former category - there is no financial support available from my current department for paid professional development so I finance all of my memberships, conferences and workshops out-of-pocket. I've always wanted to attend PRSA's International Conference but can't afford it. For those people whose jobs were "stingy" with professional development, they had to choose wisely what they would attend and most chose an affinity event. The most popular affinity events were: National Association of Broadcast Journalist (NABJ) National Convention, National Black MBA Conference, Congressional Black Caucus Week and ColorComm.
When I looked back at the AAF event, at first I narrowed it down to cost. The event was $35 for members if purchased in advance and $45 for members at the door. For non-members it was $10 more. For students it was $10 less. I went because it was a high-quality event with panelists that I wanted to connect with and I try to support the organization's communications efforts. One of the board members is a young woman of color who leads communications and she is amazing! Additionally, I feel an obligation to go and represent just in case there is an interested member of color or a new member that doesn't have to be alone. There ended up being a few others and their jobs actually sent them there as a team. The whole "team-sending" thing is a totally unfamiliar concept to me. I'm truly impressed with companies that invest in their employees in that way. The crew that was there on behalf of their company was introducing a new industry merger so it made a little more sense that there were a number of people from that one company there. I do feel like the financial commitment required to be active in organizations is a deterrent for people of color who are already underpaid or unsupported in professional development endeavors. The local PRSA events always cost. On top of membership fees the continual event expenses add up. After pondering on this for awhile I realized it was more than just the financial commitment. AAF has a monthly AM Buzz that's free for members. They also have discounted memberships for students and people under the age of 32. Those types of perks help tremendously with affordability. I encourage my mentees to sign up for student memberships prior to graduation and always seek out the young professional discounts. But when you go somewhere and you're always the stranger, it can be uncomfortable and quite frankly, draining. I appreciate organizations like College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) that put money behind diversity & inclusion efforts. CoSIDA provides two recipients with NCAA Inclusion Grants to attend CoSIDA's national convention. The two grants are awarded to two ethnic minority professionals and include reimbursement of $1,000 in expenses related to travel, lodging and meals in addition to a complimentary convention registration. That's a guaranteed way to increase representation and show a true commitment to diversity and inclusion. PRSA has a travel grant for PRSSA students but there should be support for entry to mid-level professionals. Other organizations should implement programs similar to CoSIDA's and of course, employers should invest in their employees' career development.

​What are your thoughts on #NetworkingWhileBlack? Do you find yourself being the "only" or "one of few" at professional networking events? How does your job encourage and support professional development? Leave a comment and let's discuss!