Australian radio personality Dave Hughes says he asked his bosses for a pay cut to ensure that he and his female co-host make the same amount of money.
Fans are now praising Hughes for being a âreal man leaning in,â but heâs been quick to point out that his co-host is the âreal hero.â
The story began in March, on International Womenâs Day, when Hughesâ longtime co-host, Kate Langbroek, announced on air that she made significantly less than he did. âThis is heavy hitting. I found out last year that you get paid 40 percent more than I do for doing this show,â she said at the time.
Hughes, who claimed not to know about the pay difference, was âaudibly stunnedâ by the reveal, reported News Corp Australia. âI had no idea what we get paid. Now I feel terrible,â he said.
âYou donât need to feel terrible,â Langbroek replied. âIt wasnât your fault that you were born with two oranges in a string bag.â
After learning about the pay gap, Langbroek says she immediately went to her bosses at the radio station KIIS Network to discuss increasing her salary to match Hughesâ.
Management complied with her request, increasing her salary for the rest of 2016. However, according to News Corp, Hughesâ salary for 2017 had already been âlocked inâ â and for undisclosed reasons, Langbroekâs pay was not increased to match it.
Learning this, Hughes said he decided to request a pay cut so heâd be making the same amount as his co-host.
âFairâs fair,â he wrote on Twitter.
Hughes and Langbroek, who are set to join a new radio station in 2018, told News Corp theyâve negotiated with their new employer to ensure theyâll be making the same amount when they start at their new gig. They added that theyâll be discussing their salaries going forward to ensure that parity is always achieved.
People on social media were in a tizzy on Wednesday after news of Hughesâ decision went viral.
But Hughes emphasized that Langbroek deserved the bulk of the praise, for knowing âher worthâ and demanding it.
He added that Langbroek would have quit the show if the pay inequality had continued, and he âdid not want that.â The duo have been working together since at least 2001.
Earlier this year, actress Emma Stone said that some of her male co-stars in Hollywood had chosen to take pay cuts so sheâd get the same pay as them.
âIn my career so far, Iâve needed my male co-stars to take a pay cut so that I may have parity with them,â she told Out magazine. âAnd thatâs something they do for me because they feel itâs whatâs right and fair.â
Stone added that âselflesslyâ taking a pay cut may sometimes be necessary to challenge the status quo.
âIf my male co-star, who has a higher quote than me but believes we are equal, takes a pay cut so that I can match him, that changes my quote in the future and changes my life,â she said. âItâs not about, âWomen are this and men are that.â It is, âWe are all the same, we are all equal, we all deserve the same respect and the same rights.ââ
In the U.S., women on average are paid 80 percent of what men are paid for equal work. For women of color, however, the wage gap is even greater â 60 percent for black women and 55 percent for Latino women.