Equal pay has been the law since 1963. But today, women are still paid less than men—even with similar education, skills and experience. 

Census data from 2010 indicate that women are paid 77 cents for every dollar earned by men. 

This gap is more pronounced for women of color, with black women earning 61cents and Hispanic women earning 52 cents for every dollar paid to a white male. The negative impact of the gender-based wage gap is exacerbated for women of color, who face lower lifetime earnings overall, occupational segmentation and unequal access to assets and other wealth builders.

Economist Evelyn Murphy, founder of The WAGE Project, estimates the wage gap costs the average full-time U.S. woman worker between $700,000 and $2 million over the course of her work life.