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Texas Women’s Foundation highlights $60 billion wage gap, urges action on equal pay

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Texas Women’s Foundation highlights  billion wage gap, urges action on equal pay


Various research typically points to the state of Texas as one of the largest economies in the United States; however, new data from the Texas Women’s Foundation amplifies a systematic gender pay gap that could have widespread economic implications across the state. 

The foundation’s new white paper, Texas Women and the Wage Gap: A Corporate Leader’s Guide to Driving Workforce Sustainability, notes that the wage gap has increased since 2019 to $60.1 billion annually in lost earnings and lost economic productivity for the state. 

Karen Hughes White, the President and CEO of the Texas Women’s Foundation, said the data was released intentionally on March 25, often recognized as Equal Pay Day. 

“The Equal Pay Act was passed in the 1970s, yet we are still discussing pay for equal work,” she said. “The urgency around this now is that women comprise 46% of the Texas workforce and that’s growing.” 

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Read the full report here.   

“Over a lifetime, the average Texas woman stands to lose $750,000 in lifetime earnings. That’s game-changing for women,” Hughes White said. 

Hughes White said the designation for Equal Pay Day represents the amount of extra time women have to work in order to earn as much as men did in the previous year. 

“The most shocking part of the data is how the age gap widens based on women’s education. In Texas the more educated a woman is, the wider the wage gap is, [but] If we could just cut that wage gap the same as men with advanced degrees, it would actually cut the economic impact of the wage gap in half for equal work. We’ve been asking a long time.”

Hughes White said for the average Texas woman, the ever-widening gap can impact her ability to achieve long-term economic security, stability and success for herself and her family. 

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According to Hughes White, that is not the only barrier for women to participate consistently and fully in the Texas economic landscape. 

While the equal pay date is tied specifically to white women, Black and Hispanic women typically work much longer to achieve equal pay. 

“The Texas economy which is [among] the largest and the strongest in the nation, is increasingly dependent on women to drive its success. The time is now for change and the time is now to act,” she said. 

Texas Women’s Foundation offers statewide research on the issues impacting Texas women and girls and provides corporate, state and local decision-makers and lawmakers with critical data to inform policies, practices and programs across the state.

Hughes White said one way the foundation works to raise awareness around the wage gap across North Texas is by offering practical tools for women to pursue pay equity. 

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“When people know the issues, we can solve the issues, it’s going to take all of us to do it,” she said. 

The foundation will offer salary negotiation workshops on April 17 and May 15.    

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Texas sues Netflix for allegedly spying on kids, addicting users

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Texas sues Netflix for allegedly spying on kids, addicting users


Netflix was sued Monday (May 11) by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who accused the streaming company of spying on children and other consumers by collecting their data without consent, and designing its platform to be addictive. Ram Nabong reports.



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Texas sues Netflix, alleges platform spied on kids and collected data

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Texas sues Netflix, alleges platform spied on kids and collected data


The state of Texas announced a lawsuit against streaming giant Netflix on Monday, accusing the company of spying on children and other consumers by collecting their data without consent and designing the platform to be addictive.

Texas claims that Netflix has falsely represented to consumers that it didn’t collect or share user data while it actually tracked and sold viewers’ habits and preferences to commercial data brokers and advertising technology companies.

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The lawsuit, filed by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, claims that “Netflix’s endgame is simple and lucrative: get children and families glued to the screen, harvest their data while they are stuck there, and then monetize the data for a handsome profit.”

The state of Texas announced a lawsuit against streaming giant Netflix on Monday. (Nikos Pekiaridis/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

“When you watch Netflix, Netflix watched you,” Texas added in the lawsuit.

NETFLIX CO-FOUNDER REED HASTINGS TO STEP DOWN, DEPARTURE IS ‘SPOOKING INVESTORS’

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NFLX NETFLIX INC. 85.39 -2.10 -2.40%

The complaint quotes comments made by former CEO Reed Hastings who said in 2020, while he was still leading the streaming company, that “we don’t collect anything,” amid questions over Big Tech companies’ data collection practices.

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Netflix was also accused of quietly using “dark patterns” to keep users watching on its platform, such as an autoplay feature that starts a new show after a different show ends.

NETFLIX RAISES SUBSCRIPTION PRICES ACROSS ALL PLANS

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed the lawsuit. (Cheney Orr/Reuters)

Paxton said in a press release that Netflix “has built a surveillance program designed to illegally collect and profit from Texans’ personal data without their consent, and my office will do everything in our power to stop it.”

The attorney general said he’s charging Netflix under the state’s Deceptive Trade Practices Act and seeks to require Netflix to stop the unlawful collection and disclosure of user data, require Netflix to disable autoplay by default on kid’s profiles, and to secure injunctive relief and civil penalties.

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FOX Business reached out to Netflix for comment.

Reuters contributed to this report.



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6 people found dead inside a boxcar in Texas, officials say | CNN

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6 people found dead inside a boxcar in Texas, officials say | CNN


Six people were found dead inside a cargo train boxcar in a Texas city along the southern border on Sunday, officials said.

The bodies were found in a Union Pacific train at a rail yard in Laredo, around 160 miles south of San Antonio, just after 3:30 p.m. local time, said Jose Espinoza, a public information officer with the Laredo Police Department.

The circumstances of their deaths are unknown, said Laredo police spokesperson Joe Baeza, according to CNN affiliate KGNS, and an investigation is underway.

Union Pacific operates across the border and is the only railroad that services all access points into Mexico, according to the freight company’s website.

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Temperatures on Sunday afternoon in Laredo were in the low-mid 90s, though it’s unclear whether heat was a factor.

Union Pacific said it was saddened by the incident and is working closely with law enforcement to investigate.

Laredo police said they received a call around 3 p.m. from an employee at the Union Pacific rail yard, KGNS reported. The bodies were discovered during a routine rail car inspection, police said. No survivors were found.

CNN has reached out to Laredo police for more information.

“It’s a very early phase of the investigation. There’s not a lot to reveal right now,” Baeza said, KGNS reported.

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The immigration status and ages of the deceased are not yet known, Espinoza said.

US Customs and Border Protection referred CNN to the Laredo Police Department, saying “The incident remains under investigation by Laredo Police Department and Homeland Security Investigation and Texas Rangers.”

CNN has reached out to the Department of Homeland Security, HSI and the Texas Department of Public Safety.

“It’s a very unfortunate event,” Espinoza told CNN. “It was too many lives that were lost.”

This story has been updated with additional information.

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