Spending queens and investing girlies: Why you should follow these 5 women this equal pay day

Equal Pay Day is back, shining a light on the frustrating reality: Women still earn less than men for the same work.

According to the Census Bureau’s latest data, women working full time, year-round earn 84 cents for every dollar men make. The gender pay gap varies for women of color and is recognized on various days throughout the year. Black women’s equal pay day is on July 9, while Latina’s equal pay day is on October 3, almost seven months after today’s observances.

Despite this annual symbolic day, the gender wage gap persists and the ongoing awareness and fight for fair pay continues.

Reckon has gathered a list of five women across Instagram and TikTok, educating their audiences on everything from pay equity to empowering the financial freedom of women.

Elyse Lyons – @thesavvysagittarius

While New Year’s resolutions hardly stick for some, they did when Elyse Lyons first took on the “No Spend January” trend as an annual habit seven years ago. Expert money savers like Lyons have mastered the trend and are who social media deems as the ‘Queen of No Spend Months.’

Mykail James – @boujiebudgeter 

Mykail James landed her first “big-girl job” — which Gen Z considers to include a competitive salary, great benefits and a bonus — at age 22. It also came with something she didn’t want: financial stress. Now she educates a community of more than 70,000 TikTok followers as the Boujie Budgeter for people seeking tips and tricks — from navigating a high-yield savings account to offering advice on negotiating your salary.

Jully-Alma Taveras – @investinglatina

Jully-Alma Taveras is a bilingual personal finance writer known for starting Investing Latina. From her YouTube channel to her social media, Taveras works to inspire and educate women of color on investing and becoming financially powerful. She tells money stories from the lens of a Dominican Republic-born immigrant living in New York that went from being a shopaholic to a smart spender and investor.

Nika Booth – @debtfreegonnabe 

Nika Booth is on a path to tackle her debt while also teaching people how to take control of their money by creating educational videos on everything from student loans to using side hustles to pay down debt. By using her personal journey with money and debt, she uncovers the good, bad and ugly about finances, all while manifesting a debt-free life.

Tori Dunlap – @herfirst100k

Tori Dunlap is “fighting the patriarchy by making women rich” with her money expertise shared across Instagram and TikTok, as well as her podcast and book Financial Feminist. In Dunlap’s New York Times bestseller book, Financial Feminist, she dives into why most spending advice is misogynistic, why women are better investors than men and the impact of the gender wage gap.