Sondra Collins, a senior economist with the Mississippi Institution of Higher Learning, said the gender wage gap is driven by several factors, including unequal pay for equal work, occupational differences and caregiving responsibilities that can interrupt careers.
"We have to think about the pay gap in basically two different ways," Collins said. "The one that I think we think about most is two people having the exact same job ... and one is being paid more than the other. But the other part of the gender pay gap is that men and women ... tend to take different jobs, and that's an even bigger problem."
Collins said those differences often begin early in life, when boys and girls are encouraged toward different career paths. She said exposing students to a wider range of career opportunities before high school could help narrow future wage disparities.
"We see the gender split happen around fourth or fifth grade," Collins said. "Helping kids understand what's possible ... would probably go a long way."
Mississippi Black Women's Roundtable Executive Director Cassandra Welchlin said workplace policies also contribute to wage disparities. She pointed to salary history questions during hiring, limited pay transparency and access to paid leave as barriers that can keep wage gaps in place.
"It's not really about saving," Welchlin said. "It is about how do we correct the wrong." She said employers should stop asking applicants about previous salaries because doing so can carry forward past wage discrimination.
Both women said closing wage gaps would benefit Mississippi's economy as well as individual workers.
"The more people are paid, and the more fairly they're paid, the more that money turns in the economy," Collins said. "They spend that money on goods and services here, which creates more jobs."
Welchlin said unequal wages make it harder for families to afford basic necessities, including housing, child care and utilities, while reducing economic activity in local communities.
"If we care about our people, if we want to see our children thrive, we want our workforce healthy, then we have to implement these kinds of policies and practices," Welchlin said.
Collins said Mississippi could reduce wage disparities by strengthening its equal pay law and encouraging businesses to regularly review compensation practices. Welchlin said expanding paid parental leave and increasing pay transparency would also help workers achieve greater financial stability.
Although Black Women's Equal Pay Day highlights the larger wage gap experienced by Black women, both Collins and Welchlin said the broader conversation is about ensuring all Mississippians have access to fair wages, equal opportunities and the ability to build long-term economic security.
"No state can thrive without its people," Welchlin said. "Its people must be at the heart."
