THE PAYCHECK FAIRNESS ACT

by: Sanford D. Bishop, Jr (D-GA, 2nd)

Washington, D.C. - March 28, 2019 - (The Ponder News) -- Congressman Sanford D. Bishop, Jr (D-GA, 2nd) issued the following statement after the House approved H.R. 7, 242 to 187. The Paycheck Fairness Act introduced by Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), will strengthen the Equal Pay Act of 1963 and close loopholes that have allowed many employers to avoid responsibility for discriminatory pay:

“Pay discrimination in the workplace is real. The Paycheck Fairness Act is an important step toward ending gender-based wage discrimination and ensuring all women receive equal pay for equal work. The impact of the wage gap grows throughout a woman’s career. Based on today’s wage gap, a woman who worked full-time, year-round would typically lose $406,760 over a 40-year career. This woman would have to work nearly ten years longer than her male counterpart to make up this lifetime wage gap.

"The wage gap is even larger for women of color: African-American women on average earn only 61 cents for every dollar paid to white, non-Hispanic men. When women bring home less money each day, it means they have less for the everyday needs of their families – groceries, rent, child care, and doctors’ visits. It also means they have far less savings for retirement. I was proud to support this legislation and I urge my Senate colleagues to do the same.”

See also:

Bonamici Praises Passage of Paycheck Fairness Act

Rep. Tulsi Gabbard: We’re One State Away From the Equal Rights Amendment

Washington, D.C. - January 29, 2019 - (The Ponder News) -- Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (HI-02) spoke on the House floor, urging passage of the Equal Rights Amendment to guarantee legal gender equality for women and men under the U.S. Constitution.



Rep. Tulsi Gabbard said:

“It's been nearly 100 years since women fought for and won the right to vote. Yet, we still do not have equal rights and protection under the United States Constitution. There are too many examples in our everyday lives where women still do not get equal pay for equal work and where we still face discrimination simply for being a woman.

“In 1923, the Equal Rights Amendment was introduced in Congress to prohibit discrimination on the basis of sex, and was reintroduced every session until it finally passed in 1972. However, because of an arbitrary deadline in 1982, by that time, only 35 states out of the required 38 had ratified the amendment. In the past two years, we've inched forward with successful votes in Nevada and Illinois, and now we're just one state away from finally passing the Equal Rights Amendment. This is not about politics. It's about equality. It's about humanity. It's long overdue that we pass the Equal Rights Amendment and include equality between men and women in the United States Constitution.”

Rep. Tulsi Gabbard has fought for equal treatment and opportunity for all Americans throughout her time in Congress. She has cosponsored a joint resolution that will remove the arbitrary deadline for state ratification and allow for the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment. She has also cosponsored the Paycheck Fairness Act to strengthen the Equal Pay Act of 1963 and guarantee that women can challenge pay discrimination and hold employers accountable.

Related News:

Hastings’ Statement on the Introduction of the Paycheck Fairness Act

Equal Pay

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Blumenthal, Murphy Join Murray, DeLauro in Reintroducing Paycheck Fairness Act
Senator Richard Blumenthal- (D - CT)
April 4, 2017
U.S. Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and Chris Murphy (D-CT) joined Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), ranking member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, and Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) in marking Equal Pay Day and reintroducing the Paycheck Fairness Act, legislation that would strengthen the Equal Pay Act of 1963 and guarantee that women can challenge pay discrimination and hold employers accountable.
Read more...

Bennet Calls for Passage of Paycheck Fairness Act on Equal Pay Day
Senator Michael F. Bennet - (D - CO)
April 4, 2017
Colorado U.S. Senator Michael Bennet today marked Equal Pay Day by calling on Congress to pass the Paycheck Fairness Act to help close the pay gap between women and men working the same jobs. Equal Pay Day represents how far into this year a woman must work, on average, to earn as much as a man earned in 2016. According to the American Association of University Women (AAUW), in 2015, women working full time typically were paid only 80 percent of men's earnings.
Read more...

Congresswoman Frederica S. Wilson’s Statement on Equal Pay Day
Frederica Wilson (D-FL, 24th)
April 4, 2017
“Despite its name, Equal Pay Day calls attention to the fact that women in the United States who work fulltime earn on average only 80 cents for each dollar earned by a man. This economic injustice is even worse for African-American and Hispanic women, who earn 63 cents and 54 cents, respectively, for every dollar earned by white men. Based on the current wage gap, today a 20-year-old woman just starting to work fulltime stands to lose a total of $418,800 during a 40-year career compared to her male counterpart.
Read more...

WASSERMAN SCHULTZ STATEMENT ON EQUAL PAY DAY
Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL, 23rd)
April 4, 2017
“Today is Equal Pay Day, one of the most disturbing dates on the calendar. It marks just how far into the next year that a woman has to work in order to earn the same wages a man earned in the previous year. That disparity is now 80 cents on the dollar, which means it took 94 days to reach this point. For women of color, the gap is even wider, with African-American women earning an average of 63 cents, and Hispanic women making 54 cents compared to white men.
Read more...

Walz Cosponsors Paycheck Fairness Act, Marks Equal Pay Day
Timothy J. Walz (D-MN, 1st)
April 4, 2017
“It’s shocking that in 2017, we’re still fighting to ensure equal pay for equal work,” Representative Walz said. “And let me be clear, equal pay isn’t just a women’s issue—it’s an economic and middle class family issue. Families increasingly rely on women’s wages to make ends meet. When women bring home less money each day, they have less for the everyday needs of their families – groceries, rent, child care, gasoline.”
Read more...

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