[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 44 Introduced in House (IH)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. CON. RES. 44

    Recognizing the significance of Equal Pay Day to illustrate the 
             disparity between wages paid to men and women.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 4, 2017

 Ms. Frankel of Florida (for herself, Ms. DeLauro, Ms. Slaughter, Mr. 
 Gutierrez, Ms. Speier, Ms. Lee, Mr. Brendan F. Boyle of Pennsylvania, 
    Ms. Norton, Mrs. Carolyn B. Maloney of New York, Mr. Tonko, Ms. 
Schakowsky, Mr. Pocan, Mr. Grijalva, Mr. O'Halleran, Mrs. Dingell, Ms. 
    Tsongas, Mr. Thompson of California, Ms. DelBene, Ms. Wasserman 
Schultz, Mr. Takano, Mr. McEachin, Mr. Beyer, Ms. Sinema, Ms. Sanchez, 
Ms. Castor of Florida, Mr. Cardenas, Ms. Clarke of New York, Ms. Rosen, 
    Mr. Meeks, Mr. Carbajal, Mr. Himes, Mr. Clay, Mr. Hastings, Mr. 
Serrano, Mrs. Napolitano, Ms. Plaskett, Mr. Suozzi, Mr. Cartwright, Mr. 
   Ruppersberger, Mr. Krishnamoorthi, Mrs. Davis of California, Mr. 
  Raskin, Ms. Pingree, Ms. Jackson Lee, Mr. Cicilline, Mr. Welch, Mr. 
Lowenthal, Ms. Velazquez, Ms. Adams, Ms. Titus, Mr. Conyers, Ms. Wilson 
   of Florida, Mr. Keating, Mr. Loebsack, Mr. Scott of Virginia, Mr. 
 Foster, Mr. Lawson of Florida, Mr. Schiff, Mr. Norcross, Ms. DeGette, 
 Ms. McCollum, Ms. Brownley of California, Ms. Matsui, Mrs. Lawrence, 
 Mr. Kind, Mr. Huffman, Mrs. Lowey, Mr. Ryan of Ohio, Mr. Correa, Ms. 
Maxine Waters of California, Mr. Brady of Pennsylvania, Ms. Fudge, Ms. 
 Clark of Massachusetts, Mrs. Bustos, Mr. Cohen, Ms. Moore, Ms. Meng, 
Mr. Sarbanes, Mr. Swalwell of California, Ms. Michelle Lujan Grisham of 
New Mexico, Mr. Gallego, Mr. Polis, Mr. Pallone, Mr. Lynch, Mr. Nolan, 
  Ms. Shea-Porter, Ms. Jayapal, Mr. Garamendi, and Ms. Kuster of New 
  Hampshire) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was 
      referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
    Recognizing the significance of Equal Pay Day to illustrate the 
             disparity between wages paid to men and women.

Whereas section 6(d) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 
        206(d)(1)) prohibits discrimination in compensation for equal work on 
        the basis of sex;
Whereas title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e et seq.) 
        prohibits discrimination in compensation because of race, color, 
        religion, national origin, or sex;
Whereas over 5 decades after the passage of the Equal Pay Act of 1963 (29 U.S.C. 
        206 note), Census Bureau data shows that women working full time, year 
        round are paid an overall average of 80 cents for every dollar paid to 
        men, while Asian-American women working full time, year round are paid 
        85 cents, African-American women working full time, year round are paid 
        63 cents, Hispanic women working full time, year round are paid 54 
        cents, American Indian and Alaska Native women working full time, year 
        round are paid 58 cents, and Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander women 
        working full time, year round are paid 60 cents compared to White, non-
        Hispanic men;
Whereas if current trends continue, on average, women will have to wait 42 years 
        for equal pay, while African-American women will wait 107 years, and 
        Hispanic women will wait 231 years;
Whereas the wage gap collectively costs women employed full time in the United 
        States more than $840 billion in annual lost wages, meaning families 
        have less money to spend on goods and services that help drive economic 
        growth;
Whereas sex discrimination in education, hiring, and promotion has played a role 
        in maintaining a work force segregated by sex;
Whereas sex-based wage differentials--

    (1) depress employee wages and living standards necessary for their 
health and well-being;

    (2) reduce family incomes and contribute to the higher poverty rates 
among women and female-headed households;

    (3) prevent the effective and maximum utilization of available labor 
resources; and

    (4) constitute an unfair method of competition;

Whereas opening traditionally male jobs to women and reducing occupational 
        segregation by sex increases earnings for women;
Whereas when women are paid fairly, families are stronger, businesses prosper, 
        and American values and the economy are strengthened;
Whereas fair pay strengthens the economic security of families and enhances 
        retirement savings;
Whereas nearly \2/3\ of workers paid the minimum wage or less are women and the 
        concentration of women in low-wage jobs is a significant contributor to 
        the wage gap;
Whereas women are less likely to be able to pay off their student loan debt 
        promptly; for 2007-08 college graduates, women working full time had 
        paid off 33 percent of their student loan debt on average, while men 
        working full time had paid off 44 percent of their debt;
Whereas over 60 percent of private sector workers report that their employers 
        either prohibit or discourage them from discussing their pay, which 
        keeps women from learning when they are the victims of pay 
        discrimination and remedying that discrimination;
Whereas April 4, 2017, is Equal Pay Day, marking the day that symbolizes how far 
        into 2017 women must work until their pay from 2016 equals what men were 
        paid in 2016 alone; and
Whereas numerous national organizations have designated Tuesday, April 4, 2017, 
        as Equal Pay Day to represent the additional time that women must work 
        to compensate for the average 20 percent lower wages paid to women last 
        year: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), 
That the Congress recognizes the significance of Equal Pay Day to 
illustrate the disparity between wages paid to men and women, and its 
impact on women, families, and the Nation.
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