Cities across the United States have made remarkable progress in closing the gender pay gap. Despite being awarded the title of “America’s Most Livable City,” Pittsburgh and the surrounding region continue to struggle with pay equity, especially when it comes to women of color. Employers in the Greater Pittsburgh region have the power to close the gender pay gap.

The Level Up campaign will be asking organizations throughout the Pittsburgh region to take the Pay Equity Pledge. This pledge, developed by a working committee of local businesses, nonprofits, and organizations dedicated to racial, gender, and economic justice, has five pillars:

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1. Commit to supporting, promoting, and engaging in pay transparency early during the hiring process.

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2. Ensure a fair and equitable hiring process by eliminating desired salary and salary history questions from the application process.

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3. Provide annual organization-wide diversity trainings to address, reduce, and educate about unconscious biases and associated barriers that impact hiring, promotion, and organizational culture.

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4. Undertake an annual review of gender and race pay differences among employees performing comparable tasks requiring similar levels of responsibility, skills, complexity, and working conditions and considering levels of education, prior experience, skill, and organization tenure.

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5. Commit to reviewing policies and practices to ensure compliance with The National Labor Relations Act of 1935.