Equal pay measure puts ABQ on national forefront

Albuquerque Mayor Richard Berry said Tuesday that the passage of an equal-pay ordinance by the Albuquerque City Council this week puts the Duke City on the national stage regarding the issue. The ordinance is also being hailed by many in Albuquerque’s business community too.
The measure incentivizes businesses seeking city contracts to offer equal pay to women by giving a 5 percent weighted preference to companies holding a “pay equity business certificate” issued by the city’s Office of Diversity and Human Rights.
Berry said the initiative is not only good for business owners, but “puts Albuquerque on the national forefront with pay equity.” Albuquerque is the first city in country to incentivize pay equity between men and women. Women in the state earn roughly 80 cents for every dollar a man earns, and the wage gap for Latina women is even wider — 55 cents to every dollar.
“We are extremely happy to see the city of Albuquerque take a step toward narrowing the pay gap between men and women and provide an incentive for businesses that are also working to narrow that gap,” said Pamelya Herndon, executive director of the Southwest Women’s Law Center. “Although businesses are not required to show complete parity in pay between men and women under the new ordinance, this is an opportunity for the city to gather reliable data on pay differences, and watch whether businesses move to improve their efforts to provide equal pay for women,” she said.
The initiative was spearheaded by Berry and City Councilors Diane Gibson and Klarissa Peña. The ordinance takes effect July 1.
By: Sal Christ (Albuquerque Business First)
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