• by Richard Whitman , Columnist, April 2, 2019

Well, I knew there was an Employee Appreciation Day. This year we celebrated that fine day in March. It was a Wednesday as I recall. I celebrated by working all day. 

But I didn’t know that today is Equal Pay Day, until the folks at Phenomenon brought it to my attention with an amusing video they produced to commemorate the occasion. 

And you’ll learn a lot, including of course what the concept of equal pay is all about. It’s a bit tricky, I know, so rather than my attempting to explain and mucking it all up, check out Amy Panzarasa’s clear and concise commentary on the subject here. She’s the Chief Talent and Culture Officer at the agency, so it’s her job to know the ins and outs. 

Oh, and you may have a question or two about women being bossy in the workplace. Yeah, that’s covered in the video as well. 

And complimenting a female co-worker? Totally OK! Even in the #MeToo era. Which is great. As the agency’s HR manager Rudee Bagsbee notes, “We all love compliments.” 

But as Phenomenon Chief Creative Officer Linda Knight cautions, do stay away from phrases like “hotty hot sticks” when expressing your praise or admiration for a co-worker. Regardless of gender, I would imagine. 

Which should go without saying. But in this day and age, not much goes without saying.