On average, men take home $25,000 more than women a year. The gender pay gap is real, and it’s one that Meggie Palmer is proactively trying to close.
Support your girlfriends.
Palmer, a former journalist and finance expert, is also the founder of PepTalkHer – a platform and newly-launched app designed to bolster women’s negotiating skills in the workplace, arming them with the confidence necessary to ask for what they deserve.
As a keynote speaker at the Vogue Codes Sydney Summit event, Palmer delivered inspiring words on how to firstly, understand why and how the gap exists, and also practical ways to help women affect change in their financial and professional lives.
According to Palmer, there are three ‘gaps’ pertaining to the gender pay gap we need to consider:
The reality gap: “There’s a disconnect in what we see versus what the reality is. For example, Hollywood has been telling us there’s no market for content produced by women, for women–Reese Witherspoon and her production company proved that incorrect,” explains Palmer. Similarly, society has conditioned women to believe they aren’t worth as much as their male counterparts, but this is not at all rooted in fact.
The ownership gap: “This relates to people not owning the situation they’re in and doing things differently,” says Palmer, adding that there were pivotal moments in her career that finally pushed her to own the fact that she was opposed to the gender pay gap, and taking action, thus launching her app.
The value gap: “Women don’t accept compliments, sending a message to themselves, and others, that they’re not worthy.”
At its very core, the PepTalkHer app is a place to log work successes, learn negotiating skills, and ultimately, close gender pay gaps between women and men in similar working roles. According to Palmer, the app focuses on three main pillars:
Track your contribution – know you’re awesome
You can log your achievements and have a running list of all the reasons why you deserve a raise.
Know your value
Start having conversations about money. Talk to your friends, talk to males in your industry, and colleagues in your business. If you don’t know what your colleagues are earning, it’s likely you’re not earning enough.
Always negotiate, and if you’re uncomfortable negotiating, practice it in a low-risk situation. It will become easier.
Build a support crew
Ask your friends questions for support and to help you in high stress situations. Bounce ideas of people in similar situations, and don’t be afraid of asking for advice.
For more Vogue Codes coverage, head to vogue.com.au/vogue-codes.