UTA plans to observe Wednesday’s “Day Without a Woman” national strike effort. Employees will be encouraged to attend offsite events planned by agency to coincide with the day of activism.
The “Day Without a Woman,” planned by organizers of the Women’s March on Washington, aims to foster economic solidarity with women and “all gender-oppressed people” as a means of demonstrating the value of women in the workforce. UTA will sanction female employees missing work in honor of the demonstration and to highlight the issue of gender inequality.
“We consider it vital for UTA to be a part of the global dialogue about gender equity and underscore its importance,” said UTA CEO Jeremy Zimmer. “Women play a critical role in the workforce and are essential members of the UTA family, and we fully support this event and encourage women across the agency to mark the day.”
UTA has planned two speaker lineups for its female employees based in the New York and Los Angeles offices. Those events feature conversations and speeches from community leaders and entertainment/news talent “discussing issues of gender equity and the arts.” The speakers include Cathy Schulman of Women in Film, Planned Parenthood of NY city board chair Katie Danziger, ABC News Chief Business, Technology & Economics Correspondent and Rebecca Jarvis, and Bustle executive editor Julie Alvin.
Employees working out of UTA’s Toronto office are also organizing a clothing and fundraising drive for Toronto Dress for Success and local shelter Women’s Habitat.
“On the heels of our United Voices rally, it was a very natural decision to stand up for, and with, our own female employees,” said UTA’s global head of human resources Suzette Ramirez-Carr. “Every woman will have the freedom to spend the day as she sees fit—with the full support of her male colleagues—and I couldn’t be more proud of the conversations taking shape globally around this decision.”
UTA last month hosted an anti-Trump rally in lieu of an Oscar party, attended by such notables as Jodie Foster and Keegan Michael-Key.
