[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 41 (Thursday, April 2, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Page S3116]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                             EQUAL PAY DAY

  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, tomorrow, April 3, 1998, is Equal Pay Day. 
This is the day by which women will have had to work all of 1997 and 
the first three months of 1998 to make what a man made in 1997 alone. 
We are not talking about jobs requiring different skills or abilities. 
We are talking about equal pay for equal work. This is not a glass 
ceiling, this is a glass wall. Women cannot break the glass ceiling 
until the wall comes down and they are given the equal pay that they 
deserve.
  Early in the next century, women--for the first time ever--will 
outnumber men in the United States workplace. In 1965, women held 35 
percent of all jobs. That has grown to more than 45 percent today. And 
in a few years, women will make up a majority of the workforce.
  Fortunately, there are more business and career opportunities for 
women today than there were thirty years ago. Unlike 1965, federal, 
state, and private sector programs now offer women many opportunities 
to choose their own futures. Working women also have opportunities to 
gain the knowledge and skills to achieve their own economic security.
  But despite these gains, working women still face a unique 
challenge--achieving pay equity. The average woman earns 74 cents for 
every dollar that the average man earns. According to a study by the 
National Academy of Sciences, one-half of the pay gap is due to 
discrimination. This is unacceptable.
  This discrimination is evident even in traditionally female 
professions such as nursing. For example, Marcelle, my wife, is a 
registered nurse. Female registered nurses make on average $7,600 a 
year less than men. It is unacceptable when female nurses make only 80 
percent of the wages of their male counterparts for the same work.
  My home state of Vermont is a leader in providing pay equity. 
According to the Institute for Women's Policy Research, Vermont ranks 
third in providing equal pay. Even with this ranking, the average woman 
in Vermont still is making less than 76 cents for every dollar that the 
average man makes in Vermont. We must work in the Senate and in the 
workplace to close this gap.
  I am pleased to join Senator Daschle in reintroducing the Paycheck 
Fairness Act. This legislation will help to address the problem of pay 
inequality by redressing past discrimination and increasing enforcement 
against future abuses.
  Senator Harkin is also a true leader on pay equity. I am an original 
cosponsor of his bill, the Fair Pay Act, which prohibits pay 
discrimination based on sex, race or national origin. These two pieces 
of legislation will help to provide women with what they deserve: equal 
pay for equal work.
  I understand that these bills will not solve all of the problems of 
pay inequity, but they will close legal loopholes that allow employers 
to routinely underpay women. By closing these loopholes, we will help 
women achieve better economic security and provide them with more 
opportunities.
  Women are being advanced in the workplace and the glass ceiling is 
slowly cracking. Last year, President Clinton appointed Madeline 
Albright as the first female Secretary of State, and I am proud that 
Vermont is also a leader in advancing women in the workplace. The 
University of Vermont has a female president, Dr. Judith Ramaley, and 
Martha Rainville was recently elected Adjutant General of the Vermont 
National Guard--the first woman in the nation to hold this position. 
While women are advancing in the workplace, we need to ensure that they 
are receiving fair pay for their work.
  I want to commend Senator Daschle and Senator Harkin on their 
initiative in introducing the Paycheck Fairness Act and the Fair Pay 
Act. I also want to recognize and commend the hundreds of organizations 
around the country that will recognize tomorrow as Equal Pay Day.

                          ____________________