MIKULSKI, DELAURO REINTRODUCE PAYCHECK FAIRNESS ACT TO END WAGE DISCRIMINATION

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                             

March 25, 2015

 

CONTACT:

Matt Jorgenson / Alanna Wellspeak (Mikulski) 202-228-1122

Sara Lonardo (DeLauro) 202-225-3661

 

 

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Barbara A. Mikulski (D-Md.) and Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) today reintroduced the Paycheck Fairness Act, legislation which would help close the wage gap between women and men working the same jobs. On average, women make just 78 cents for every dollar made by a man.

 

“Middle class families need a raise and more money in the family checkbook. Five years ago we made a down payment towards equal pay passing the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act to keep the courthouse doors open. I’m fighting to finish the job and stop wage discrimination from happening in the first place,” said Senator Mikulski, a senior member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pension (HELP) Committee. “Equal pay is not just for our pocketbooks, it’s about family checkbooks and getting it right in the law books. The Paycheck Fairness Act ensures that women will no longer be fighting on their own for equal pay for equal work.”

“Equal pay is not just a problem for women, but for families, who are trying to pay their bills, trying to get ahead, trying to achieve the American Dream, and are getting a smaller paycheck than they have earned for their hard work,” Congresswoman DeLauro said. “The Paycheck Fairness Act will help the Equal Pay Act fulfill its intended objective, offer real protections to ensure equal pay for equal work, and see that women are paid the same as the other half of our nation’s workforce for the same job.”

 

The Paycheck Fairness Act builds upon the landmark Equal Pay Act signed into law in 1963 by closing loopholes that have kept it from achieving its goal of equal pay. The bill would require employers to show pay disparity is truly related to job-performance, not gender.

 

It also prohibits employer retaliation for sharing salary information with coworkers. Under current law employers can sue and punish employees for sharing such information. In addition, it strengthens remedies for pay discrimination by increasing compensation women can seek, allowing them to seek both back pay and punitive damages for pay discrimination.

 

The bill empowers women in the workplace through a grant program to strengthen salary negotiation and other workplace skills, and requires the Department of Labor to enhance outreach and training efforts to eliminate pay disparities.

 

President Obama’s first bill, signed into law on January 29, 2009, was the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which overturned the 180-day statute of limitations for women to contest pay discrimination. ThePaycheck Fairness Act would close the loopholes that allow pay discrimination to continue in the first place and, with Ledbetter, provide employees the rights they need to challenge and eliminate pay discrimination in the workplace.

 

The bill has been endorsed by President Obama, Lilly Ledbetter and a coalition of over 300 advocacy groups.