Collection context
Summary
- Title:
- Patricia Curia San Jose Comparable Worth Strike collection
- Dates:
- 1972-2005
- Creators:
- Curia, Patricia
- Abstract:
- Consists of news clippings, correspondence, articles, ephemera and other materials related to the 1981 San Jose city workers strike in support of equal pay for comparable worth.
- Extent:
- 1.00 cubic feet (2 boxes)
- Language:
- Languages represented in the collection: English.
- Preferred citation:
-
[Identification of item], Patricia Curia San Jose Comparable Worth Strike Collection, larc.ms.0117, Labor Archives and Research Center, San Francisco State University.
Background
- Scope and content:
-
Consists of news clippings, correspondence, articles, ephemera and other materials related to the 1981 San Jose city workers strike in support of equal pay for comparable worth. The collection includes job evaluation notes on library positions using the Hay Guide Chart-Profile Method of Job Evaluation, as well as a transcript of an oral history interview with Pat Curia.
- Biographical / historical:
-
Patricia Curia joined the staff at the San Jose Public Library in December 1971. She was a member of both the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees Union (AFSCME) Local 101, and Concerned Librarian Activist Workers (CLAW). She held the position of Senior Librarian and Head of Reference Services in 1981 when City of San Jose employees, represented by AFSCME Local 101, went on strike for equal pay for jobs of comparable worth. Curia was the library representative on the Hay Study team that analyzed job duties and responsibilities of city employees prior to the strike.
The Equal Pay Act of 1963 was a federal anti-discrimination law that made it illegal to pay men and women different salaries for similar work performed in the same place. The term "comparable worth" is used to describe the concept that women and men should receive equal pay for jobs calling for comparable skill and responsibility. In 1979, as part of its contract with the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Local 101, the City of San Jose hired the firm of Hay Associates to perform a comparable worth study of management and employees. The Hay Study found that while men and women in the same jobs were paid equally, jobs dominated by women were paid 2% to 10% below the average for all city jobs, and male-dominated jobs averaged 3% to 15% above the average. In June 1981, AFSCME Local 101 tried to negotiate wage adjustments based on the findings of the Hay Study. When the City refused to implement changes that would address the disparity between men and women's pay for comparable work, about 1,500 librarians, mechanics, janitors and clerical workers of the City of San Jose went out on strike. The strike lasted ten days and ended with a settlement that included equity adjustments for female-dominated jobs that had been deemed under-paid. It was the first strike in history where a settlement included the issue of comparable pay.
- Acquisition information:
- Materials were transferred from Wayne State at the request of the donor, Patricia Curia. Accession numbers 1993/069, 2010/032.
- Processing information:
-
Processed by Labor Archives and Research Center staff; additions processed by Frances Wratten Kaplan in 2016.
- Arrangement:
-
Arranged in four series: Series 1. Correspondence, 1979-1985; Series 2: Comparable Worth/Pay Equity Research Materials, 1972-1985; Series 3: Publications, Clippings and Ephemera, 1979-1985; Series 4: Oral History, 2005
- Physical location:
- Collection is available onsite.
- Rules or conventions:
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Indexed terms
About this collection guide
- Date Encoded:
- This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2017-08-14 21:29:23 +0000 .
Access and use
- Restrictions:
-
Collection is open for research.
- Terms of access:
-
Copyright has not been assigned to the Labor Archives and Research Center. All requests for permission to publish or quote from materials must be submitted in writing to the Director of the Archives. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the Labor Archives and Research Center as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained by the reader.
- Preferred citation:
-
[Identification of item], Patricia Curia San Jose Comparable Worth Strike Collection, larc.ms.0117, Labor Archives and Research Center, San Francisco State University.
- Location of this collection:
-
J. Paul Leonard Library, Room 4601630 Holloway AveSan Francisco, CA 94132-1722, US
- Contact:
- (415) 405-5549