Ensuring equal pay for equal work

MS-Execs-2014-11-Hogan-Kathleen-397-2-800x1200One of the most important aspects of our evolving culture at Microsoft is our deep commitment to building a more diverse and inclusive workforce. If we want to build products and services for everyone on the planet, we need to represent everyone on the planet. Having a diverse and inclusive workforce is indeed a powerful bridge to the markets and people we serve.

A year and a half ago, our CEO, Satya Nadella, set out three areas of focus for Diversity & Inclusion at Microsoft: recruiting more diverse talent; expanding training to foster a more diverse and inclusive culture; and ensuring equal pay and equal opportunity. At that time, for every $1 earned by men, our female employees in the U.S. earned 99.7 cents at the same job title and level.

With that as a backdrop and in recognition of April 12 as National Equal Pay Day (which originated in 1996 as a public awareness event to illustrate the gap between men’s and women’s wages), I wanted to share our most recent data, not only for women, but also for racial and ethnic minorities in the U.S.:

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Today, for every $1 earned by men, our female employees in the U.S. earn 99.8 cents at the same job title and level. Racial and ethnic minorities in the U.S. combined earn $1.004 for every $1 earned by their Caucasian counterparts. Breaking it down even further, African American/black employees are at $1.003; Hispanic/Latino(a) employees are at 99.9 cents; and Asian employees are at $1.006 for every $1 earned by Caucasian employees at the same job title and level, respectively.

These numbers reflect our commitment to equal pay for equal work, and I’m encouraged by these results. We will continue our commitment to equal pay by monitoring this data and publicly disclosing it as part of our annual public diversity and inclusion information and data reporting. We will also continue work to ensure that all of our employees have equal opportunity.

Our announcement today is another step forward along the path of greater diversity and inclusion progress at Microsoft, and in society as a whole. Along with our industry peers, the mission of landing intentional, enduring and impactful diversity and inclusion initiatives is one will we continue to pursue vigilantly.