Cher goes off on Microsoft CEO, who says women shouldn’t ask for raises

Last week, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella spoke at the Grace Hopper Celebration. Nadella didn’t just speak — he stuck his foot all the way down his throat. Then he kicked himself a few times. He did all of this at a ceremony to honor Hopper, a brilliant woman who was a leading pioneer of computer programming.

Here’s what happened. Nadella was asked how women could help close the gender pay gap. Maria Klawe posed the question based upon census data that states women make 78 cents on the dollar compared to men. There’s also the added wrinkle that women are less likely to ask for raises than men. Klawe asked Nadella for his advice to women wanting a raise. Nadella answered terribly. He said women should just sit back and wait. If there’s enough “karma,” the raise will come on its own. Uh-oh:

Today at the 2014 Grace Hopper Celebration, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella hit the skids after Maria Klawe, president of Harvey Mudd — an institution known for its prominence in STEM fields — asked him how young women should ask for a raise.

Nadella replied that not asking for a raise can in fact be “one of the additional superpowers that, quite frankly, women who don’t ask for a raise have. Because that’s good karma. It’ll come back because somebody’s going to know that’s the kind of person that I want to trust. That’s the kind of person that I want to really give more responsibility to. And in the long-term efficiency, things catch up.”

His remarks came across as disjointed, odd, out of place, and wrong: Why tell women to accept lower pay in the short-term for the promise of the system correcting itself later, when that same system has proven that it will act unfairly?

Reaction to his comments on the raise matter were immediately negative.

[From Techcrunch]

Ooof. That was the wrong answer. After realizing the backlash, Nadella backtracked. He sent out a memo to Microsoft employees and Techcrunch that said, “If you think you deserve a raise, you should just ask.

Nadella apology wasn’t enough for Cher. Yes, that Cher. She tweeted her anger for all the world to see:

(1) #MICROSOFTS MISOGYNIST IN CHIEF WANTS WOMEN 2WAIT 4THE “REWARDS” F HIM😤ITS CALLED EQUAL PAY 4EQUAL WORK! DONT PAT OUR HEADS,GIVE US RESPECT

(2) WAIT 4 THEIR REWARDS💰MR “1950’s” #NADELLA ?U’VE GOT A LOT OF FING NERVE😡 WOMEN DONT WANT 2 WAIT TILL MEN FEEL GENEROUS💪 💃Don’t take This BS

(3) R NO LADIES UPSET, THAT THEY MAKE 84-87 CENTS TO A MANS DOLLAR ?! WTF WOMEN! AM I WRONG? R WE HAPPY 2B 2nd CLASS CITIZENS?I AM NOT😤 F THAT😡

[From Cher on Twitter]

Whoa, Cher’s emoji game is impressive. I’m also enjoying how she sticks up for regular, working-class women since Cher has never had to worry about a gender-pay gap in her career. Or has she?

Cher is currently touring with Cyndi Lauper, but she’s been tweeting a lot. Her tweets are amazing. This one makes me laugh:

Have you ever met anyone famous in an elevator? I met Janet Reno that way. She’s not as fabulous as Cher. I mean, this woman can dress like a palm tree and get away with it.

Cher

Cher

Photos courtesty of Fame/Flynet & Getty

You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.

91 Responses to “Cher goes off on Microsoft CEO, who says women shouldn’t ask for raises”

Comments are Closed

We close comments on older posts to fight comment spam.

  1. Eleonor says:

    Cher is Cher.
    I can even forgive her for that crazy face.

  2. Birdix says:

    Nadella is so much a part of the problem that he doesn’t even know he’s part of the problem. Wouldn’t it be cool if this was a wake-up call?

  3. Dani2 says:

    Haha Cher’s Twitter is the gift that keeps on giving. That Microsoft CEO is such a d-cl, saying that women who DON’T ask for raises are bringing good karma their way. It’s embatassing that he even thought that let alone had the nerve to say that in a public forum.

    • Bridget says:

      If you read the entire nterview, the context is that he’s essentially saying to let your work speak for itself, and that if you do good work the money will follow (which is the advice that he himself had gotten). BUT it completely ignores the context of gender dynamics within the workplace, as data has shown that men are significantly more likely to ask for a raise or a promotion while women are more likely to feel that they can’t ask until they are justified. Not to mention the gender pay disparity. Its ridiculous advice, and I’m not a fan of Nacelle at all, but there is at least a littlecontext.

      Its also strange advice to give at Microsoft in general, which is famously hyper-aggressive.

      • lucy2 says:

        The context does help him a little, not a lot, but you’re right that there’s even bigger problems regarding gender, the tech industry, and that particular company. Less than 30% of the entire MS workforce is female, and the numbers in the tech department are almost half of that.

      • Tiffany :) says:

        I feel like that almost makes his comment worse. Because, as CEO, he is acting like women should just take the same approach as men (what he did) and they will get the same results. As Bridget pointed out, with that perspective he is acting like he is completely unaware of the challenges that are unique to women and their pay rates.

        Someone that high up in the food chain at a company that large shouldn’t be unaware of such a huge issue, one that is especially predominate in the tech industry.

        He acts as if women haven’t been salivating for DECADES at the idea that their work could actually speak for itself. That sounds lovely, Nacelle!

      • It also goes against the standard advice that is given to men (although they don’t need as much prompting to ask for a raise). Seriously, no one is told, “Your work will stand on its own” by anyone who actually wants to see them advance. Employees are ALWAYS told to advocate for themselves, because they are the only one with their best interests at heart.

        Sitting back and waiting is why we’re stuck at 78 cents on the dollar.

      • Veronica says:

        Except that it widens the gap that’s already in place if men are asking for raises and getting them because they’re seen as “ambitious and assertive,” while women are seen as pushy and demanding. At 77 cents on the dollar, women are already starting behind the starting line. Beyond that, I’m with Cher – when the hell has waiting on men to do the right thing ever done anything for women? We’ve spent thousands of years wasting 50% of our population’s potential by telling them to shut their mouths and sit pretty. F*ck that noise.

    • Kitten says:

      I laughed so hard at her comments. She’s so bomb.

      “It’s embarrassing that he even thought that let alone had the nerve to say that in a public forum.”
      ^^^This so much.

      • Lempicka says:

        Thats the great thing about those panels and interviews though, isnt it? You can release as many prepared statements as you like but in those situations they cant hide their bias. I’m glad he called out for something that he and a lot of other CEOs are thinking every day.

      • shayne says:

        amazing woman.

    • Dani2 says:

      FML, so many spelling errors here lol, being on my phone is the worst. @OKitt her Twitter is one of those that I still stalk even though I don’t tweet myself 🙂

      @Bridget thanks for the insight but it doesn’t improve my opinion of him at all unfortunately.

      • Bridget says:

        I think Nadella is a complete idiot, but I think that ultimately we’re (his critics) the ones that look bad when we jump on a sensationalized breakdown on what he said. In fact, I’m a bit surprised that this was covered in yhe context of Cher’s Twitter comments, as she’d fairly obviously only read a news headline.

      • Dani2 says:

        @Bridget what would you like me to say? That I now understand his plight as a victim of media sensationalism, that he should be given a pass because he, as an intelligent and well travelled man, conveniently missed the fact that women are not on equal footing with men in the workplace (or any other arena of life). Nadella was born and bred in India, a country where women are not only discredited in the workplace but are also openly oppressed, he should know know better than most how very differently the rules in life apply to men and women so no honey, not giving him a pass. You, however are more than welcome to do so, it’s your right.

      • Kitten says:

        I agree with Dani2. I read the whole interview, context included, and it doesn’t change anything, really.

  4. Frida_K says:

    And this, my friends, is why I am a FEMINIST.

    YES, I said it. I am a feminist.

    And…what a jerk Nadella is and how outraged I’d be if I were a Microsoft employee right about now. Good for Cher for calling him out on it. I hope the outrage only swells and he really starts feeling some heat on the seat of his pants.

    • LakeMom says:

      The sad thing is, he doesn’t think any differently that most CEO’s..especially those in the IT industry. What I find particularly offensive is that he made his sexist comments at a Grace Hopper Celebration. I started out programming back in the days of COBOL when there were no female programmers and she was a great inspiration to me. Professors would tell you that COBOL had been created by Grace Hopper yet didn’t want to teach to women. Women were the last ones hired and the paid the least. And not only were you paid less, you had extra duties the men didn’t, such as refilling the paper, replacing ribbons, backing up the tapes, etc. Technology may had advanced through out the years, but apparently some mind sets haven’t.

      • jammypants says:

        It’s so sad that the tech industry is still going through this. Github had a recent scandal about sexual harassment and the “bro” culture. google admitted they have more white men work for them than women or minorities.

    • shayne says:

      Nadella is an idiot!

  5. jenny12 says:

    Cher is actually pretty smart and articulate.

  6. kri says:

    WTF is this guy talking about? Did he say “people” or was he singling out women only? Seems like it to me. So if a man asks for a raise, he isn’t tempting karma, but if a wooman does…? Where is this person from?

  7. Miss Gloss says:

    Someone needed to go off on that A hole. There’s still a very large disparity between male and female incomes. We’ve trusted our employers would right size our comp and we’ve sat back and waited for them to do so since the 1950s. If we listen to that misinformed prick, it could take another 70 years if we are lucky.

  8. GoodNamesAllTaken says:

    Good for her.

    • Kiddo says:

      Yeah, “don’t be a bitch, don’t ruin it for us”. doesn’t always work, does it?

      • mia girl says:

        @Kiddo – I was going to make a similar comment about Cher being so “loud”. Being loud matters.

  9. Dawn says:

    I side with Cher on this one. I work in IT and know that men will make at least 25 to 35% more for doing the same exact job as a female. When it is brought up there are always all types of excuses from “you stayed in the job too long and so your salary is what it is we had to up it to attract qualified candidates” to “men have families to support and single women with children are already getting child support”. All ridiculous but all being used. That CEO back tracked with if you think YOU DESERVE a raise, just ask. He should have followed up with don’t be surprised when you are denied.

  10. Lucy says:

    *dead* at “misogynist in chief”
    I love Cher.

  11. Green Is Good says:

    “Yes, that Cher”. There is only one CHER!! 🙂

    • Olenna says:

      Yes!! The one and only Cher! The dude is stepping all over his own di*k to apologize but it ain’t working. Good for her for calling this clueless little man out!

  12. Kiki says:

    Not to worry, we will have our female president soon.

  13. Guesto says:

    Wow, he’s all heart, that Satya Nadella. How benevolent of him to say a non-payrise asking woman would appeal more to him, and be the sort of women he’d ultimately want to give more responsibilty to. What a prince. Or do I mean prick? Yeah, prick. A prize one at that.

    Go get him, Cher.

  14. Luca76 says:

    My mother swears she got in an elevator and on the next floor Micheal Douglas and Paul Newman walked in! She said nobody said a word until they got off.

  15. Jaderu says:

    Ha! The CEO of Microsoft got outsmarted by Kristin Stewart.
    *snort*

  16. Pinky says:

    I agree with him that women should not ask for raises.

    They should demand them. And by that, I mean you walk into your boss’s office with your ducks in a row. You don’t smile and bat your eyes., you come in armed with stats–your achievements and how they’ve positively affected the bottom line for the company. No sob stories about anything else happening. Just talk about your upward shifts in responsibility, how you’ve taken on more work without being asked, how you’ve actually helped your male colleagues do their jobs better (because, I mean really, isn’t that always what happens?), and how you understand your value both as a support to your boss and to the company as a whole. You walk in there with the balls that men (and, to be honest, many women) never expect a woman to have. And if they say no, and you haven’t already, you go get a job offer from somewhere else and let them come back to you, with their tails/peens between their legs, offering you more than you were asking for in the first place. Oh, and you go in there knowing exactly what your colleagues are making. Not saying you ever tell your boss that you know (that’s a rookie mistake), but in the back of your mind you now what your male counterparts are commanding and how you stack up to them. Information is always power.

    • Kitten says:

      Absolutely. I’ve learned to do it after 8 years at my job, and it’s not easy because my boss is a very intimidating guy.

      Great post though, and I agree with every single word.

    • Bridget says:

      Actually, that’s part of the problem: data has shown that women don’t ask for raises or promotions until they feel it’s totally justified, whereas men will simply ‘go for it’. Women need to speak up more, because when they wait until all the boxes are checked, they’re actually long past the point where they should have asked for a raise.

      • Pinky says:

        I hear you, Bridget. But unless you, as a woman, come in with data and metrics, you’re going to be shown the door. You know that “you’ve got to be twice as good” mantra that people of color have to live by? Well, women do too. You hit the ground running, are friendly and not back-stabby, but you do your job well and better and faster. And then you dare them to tell you “No.” If you want to go in and ask before you have anything to show for it, you’re likely to get labeled as clueless and useless. And then, if you stay, they’re likely to tell you “No” again later, because they know they can since you backed down once before. I’m not saying wait years to ask, I’m saying, you need to have asked for a raise within the first year of your getting hired and you kick ass up until that point. It’s not fair, I know. I’m only sharing my opinion on how realistically (versus ideally) to get up the chain until you’re running things and are in the position to change them.

      • From North of Boston says:

        Data has also shown that men who ask for raises are considered ambitious and assertive – take charge up & coming types who will be rewarded in the workplace with raises and promotions. Women who do the same are often considered aggressive and demanding. They may get some addl money for asking, but will also be resented and get a rep that doesn’t lift them up in the workplace in the same way a man is rewarded for asking for a raise.

        So asking for a raise or waiting for a raise, either way puts a woman at a disadvantage pay and career wise.
        (And yeah I’ve heard the “the man is getting a bigger raise/bonus than equally qualifies / reviewed women because he’s supporting a family” nonsense and it made me furious! No one bothered to ask the women what family obligations they had, and even if they did, people should be paid based on their work/skills/what they bring to the company, not based on what’s between their legs and how often they’ve chosen to use it to create offspring.

      • But I don’t think the answer is to stay silent. They need to get used to hearing us. They need to hear it all the time, until it sounds natural to them.

    • Veronica says:

      I found that out the hard way, too. I spent years at a company only to find out that everybody else was making more than me, despite my significant seniority. I left soon after, but before I did, I damn well made sure they gave me a raise. Only a fool thinks being quiet gets you anywhere. You’re doing the job of squashing your voice for them.

    • Trashaddict says:

      This – 100%

  17. Talie says:

    My favorite tweet was when someone asked her what it was like on the Titanic and she responded! Hahaha

  18. joy says:

    I recently asked for a raise, and was totally ignored. So now I’m counting down my last two weeks before I start another job. You can’t find any more $ for me but it seems like male coworkers are tripping and falling into $? Well then we’re done here.

    • Talie says:

      I’ve found that a lot of my coworkers lie about how much they make to inflate their own egos. It’s so hard to gauge who is making what and how you know what you should ask for. Gah!

      • joy says:

        I work for a non profit, so you can figure out anyone’s pay if you look hard enough. And they SWEAR us to secrecy for thus very reason. They don’t want anyone to rock the boat.

    • Ginger says:

      Good for you! Go get em.

    • Pinky says:

      That’s how you play the game. And you can let them know what you think of their pay discrepancy in your exit interview. Off the record, if you must, but so that somebody hears it and knows it and thinks about it next time.

  19. Miss Gloss says:

    Sidenote, I met Dave Navarro in an elevator. He’s a really nice guy.

    • Ginger says:

      He is a very nice guy. I met all the guys in Jane’s Addiction when they were first starting out.

      • mia girl says:

        There was a time in my life when Jane’s Addication’s music was EVERYTHING to me. I wasn’t so much into them as individuals, but collectively their sound was amazing.

  20. Bridget says:

    I’m not a fan of Nadella, but if you read all of his remarks you can at least see the context of the comment (which is to do good work and let it speak for itself) amd the fact that the moderator immediately called him out on it. He’s giving bad advice, but its not like he’s justtelling women to be pretty and get back in the kitchen.

    • Dawn says:

      The problem with that is when you work on teams, the men will get the credit and the raise while the women get a pat on the back. Truly, been there and seen it happen. Do not be fooled.

      • Pinky says:

        I agree with you, Dawn. You keep track of every last thing you did on the team and every idea you came up with (even those that were shut down). And you toot your own horn when the time comes. And don’t be afraid to sit in a room full of people and say “I came up with the idea to…and everyone was on board with that so we….” Don’t be too intimidated to take credit for your successes because “they” won’t be afraid to call you out on “your” failures, especially when a scapegoat is necessary.

  21. Cora says:

    Someone needs to tell Kristen Stewart that this is why some of us are “angry”.

  22. vv007 says:

    When Cher divorced Sonny she claimed he withheld her rightful share of their earnings. So I guess this issue hits close to home for her.

    It is sad though that women are still struggling this way so far on. But I love that she put that guy on blast.

    More women should be doing that.

    • Hautie says:

      Oh, I saw that interview with Cher, where she explained exactly what happen.

      When the marriage went to hell and she decided to divorce Sonny, Cher found out that she was her own employee! She did not own squat. Nor did she truly have any rights to anything she created. She earned a paycheck just like everyone else. And it was not even a fair paycheck.

      Sonny had turned her into a Corp. that he owned. He basically owned her name! And any income it generated. And she had signed over the rights not realizing it. By simply signing anything he placed in front of her. Because they were married and she trusted him.

      So all that income she generated, from probably a decade. Was not hers. It was HIS. And Cher was huge. You had to have been a kid in the early to mid 1970’s to recall how much she dominated the toy market. Her face/image earned millions.

      Cher learned a very valuable lesson from that marriage. She never signed another document, that was not read by her own personal lawyer first. Unfortunately, she left that marriage basically broke. Because she trusted her husband not to steal from her.

      So yea… Cher is not the One. She has never shied away from telling a man that he is a cheap bast*rd. Nor is she about to let one, like the fool from Microsoft, tell women that “you get what you earn… by waiting for a man to decide to notice your hard work”….

    • Sassy says:

      Yes, David Geffen, a bisexual who was besotted with Cher, really helped her with her career and strategizing. Cher was being used by Sonny. She ultimately said “no” to offer of marriage to Geffen, but it is quite obvious that she learned something from Geffen’s mentoring.

  23. PunkyMomma says:

    About Celeb meetings in elevators –

    Was in an elevator with Tim Conway. It was in Las Vegas, about six in the morning and we were headed down to get breakfast. Tim was checking out the racing forms, we nodded to one another and Daddy and I left him alone.

    I did see Chris Noth up close and personal, but it wasn’t in an elevator. To. Die. For.

  24. Ginger says:

    I’ve covered NASCAR a bunch and so I’ve been in various elevators with various drivers. It’s funny because I’m so objective about my job that I literally ran into Keven Harvick, said excuse me and kept on my merry way totally oblivious. I had no idea until my husband laughed about it. He says “You ran into him and just kept right on going…fans would kill for that!” Now my hubby jokingly calls him my “boyfriend” whenever we see him.

  25. allons-y alonso says:

    And this is why I will always love Cher!!!

  26. Stacie says:

    I know this sounds like a bad joke but many years ago I walked onto an elevator with Nadia Comaneci, Bart Connor and Jon Bon Jovi. It was a Special Olympics function and we were not supposed to bug the celebs. Nevertheless I tried to politely nod hello to them but their no eye contact game was impressive. And they were a lot shorter than I thought they would be. I’d like to also add that JBJ’s kids were very, very nice.

    That being said, Cher rocks.

  27. shayne says:

    Cher is awesome!

  28. Amanda says:

    I don’t think either gender should ask for a raise, unless they prove to their boss/employer that they earned it. Singling out women is pretty sexist though.

  29. Triple Cardinal says:

    Wait…what?

    Wait for the universe to pat you on the head?

    Would he ever consider making such a bone-headed statement to a room full of professional men?

    He should clean out his desk, now. He’s utterly ineffective as a leader. That was shameful.

    And I’m not buying the apology he was humiliated into making.

  30. Joh says:

    We all should dress like Palm trees at least once in our lives, both men and women.
    I don’t think sonny was big on equality when they got together when she was 16 so……..

  31. Meghan says:

    I would probably wet myself if I met Cher in an elevator. That would be amazing.

    While not a “celebrity” I did meet the LSU Football Head Coach, Les Miles in an elevator. I am a die hard Auburn fan, and last year Auburn had just lost to LSU the week before. Because of my job, I HAD to dress in LSU colors, and LSU gave me a very nice LSU Football T-shirt, that I had on over my purple dress. My boss was in the elevator with me and Les Miles was all smiles and “so are y’all LSU fans?” My boss had NO idea that he was the Head Coach, but she was looking at me and giving me the “if you say no and that you are an Auburn fan, I will hurt you” look. I just smiled at him and I still consider it quite a wonderful meeting.

  32. stanhope says:

    I love Cher!

  33. Danskins says:

    I don’t think Cher is so fabulous as she’s currently being sued by three of her former back up dancers for covering up the sexual assault of a female fan. She’s also being sued for racial discrimination as the lawsuit alleges Cher complained that she didn’t want “too many people of color” dancing onstage.

    I find it interesting how the media chooses to overlook this portion. It’s also pretty rich for someone to complain about lack of equal pay in the workplace but is simultaneously being accused of having a terrible record of fighting against sexual assault and racial discrimination on her own tour.

  34. camila says:

    It was a very insensitive comment, given the time and place. But as a programmer, and even by the 87 cents standard, all enterprises want the best. If your work speaks for itself — and if you’re a good programmer it will–, people will pay you what you ask (if you’re making something good, businesses want you, whatever you are, gay straight girl boy trans etc; it’s a total meritoctacy). At least in IT, there is no better advice than trying to better yourself every day, whatever your gender. Nevertheless, it IS an insensitive comment because the gender issue prevails in most areas.

    Also, go Cher!