Oklahoma legislator Julia Kirt speaks on Equal Pay Day

OKLAHOMA CITY (KSWO) - March 12 is Equal Pay Day, which is a day to draw attention to the pay gap between men and women.

According to the U.S. Department of Labor, in 2022, the difference between the median wages of men and women working full time was 16 percent. A large driver of the pay disparity is job segregation, with women working in undervalued jobs that, on average, pay lower wages than those jobs mostly held by men.

We spoke with Oklahoma Senator Julia Kirt (D-30) for her thoughts on wages and how something like the makeup of the legislature can have a cascading impact on many issues.

“I think when you look at having different people in office they’re going to look at issues from different directions,” Sen. Kirt said. “And I’m not saying all women are the same or all men are the same but you’re going to get some different lenses. So for instance, women understanding maternity leave differently. We had a woman Republican legislator run on a maternity leave bill last year for state employees because she knows how important that is to the well-being of our families. That affects women’s wages overtime, and so I think having more women in office is helpful to addressing those disparities.”