The gender pay gap has gotten worse during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
According to the US Department of Labor, nearly 1.1 million women between the ages of 25 and 54 have left their jobs, while 830,000 men in that same age group have left theirs, per the Wall Street Journal.
Venus Williams told People that the gender pay gap has probably shifted because “women are taking on the brunt of responsibilities in the home,” especially when it comes to childcare.
"So a lot of them are leaving their jobs or having to reduce their work schedule because of that,” she said.
Williams also explained that "industries that women are working in predominantly have been affected too, such as hospitality, so that has [also] taken a big toll on wages and opportunities for work for women."
"And those are just some of the ways that the pandemic has really affected women, and people need to know,” she continued. “People need to be educated, because the more that we know, the more powerful we are."
In a recent essay she wrote for British Vogue, Williams talked about the unequal pay in sports and how that needs to change.
"I firmly believe that sport mirrors life and life mirrors sport," she wrote. "The lack of equality and equal opportunities in tennis is a symptom of the obstacles women face around the world."
In order to bring attention to this, Williams noted on Instagram that every day should be “equal pay day.” “Let's fill in the gap for future generations in the workplace,” she wrote. “Let's do this.”
Thanks to Williams, more people are learning about how the pandemic has affected the gender pay gap. With this knowledge, hopefully companies can finally end unequal pay.
