[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 65 (Wednesday, April 23, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E702]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[[Page E702]]
                             EQUAL PAY DAY

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. JOHN CONYERS, JR.

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, April 23, 2008

  Mr. CONYERS. Madam Speaker, I rise in recognition of Equal Pay Day, 
which was yesterday, April 22, 2008. Equal Pay Day was originated by 
the National Committee on Pay Equity in 1996 as a public awareness 
event to illustrate the gap between men's and women's wages. The day, 
observed on a Tuesday in April, symbolizes how far into the year a 
woman must work, on average, to earn as much as a man earned the 
previous year. Because women earn less, on average, than men, they must 
work longer for the same amount of pay. In other words, the average 
American woman must work 16 months to earn what a man did in 12. The 
wage gap is even greater for most women of color.
  President John F. Kennedy signed the Equal Pay Act into law in 1963, 
but the wage gap between men and women has been closing at a very slow 
rate. In 1963, women who worked full-time, year-round made 59 cents on 
average for every dollar earned by men. In 2006, women earned 77 cents 
to the dollar.
  The wage gap exists, in part, because many women and people of color 
are still segregated into a few low-paying occupations. More than half 
of all women workers hold sales, clerical and service jobs. Studies 
show that the more an occupation is dominated by women or people of 
color, the less it pays. Part of the wage gap results from differences 
in education, experience or time in the workforce. But a significant 
portion cannot be explained by any of those factors; it is attributable 
to discrimination. In other words, certain jobs pay less because they 
are held by women and people of color.
  Democrats are taking action to address the wage gap. The House has 
already passed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which restores basic 
protections against pay discrimination by rectifying the May 2007 
Ledbetter v. Goodyear Supreme Court decision that overturned precedent 
and made it much more difficult for workers to pursue pay 
discrimination claims. The Senate is scheduled to consider this 
legislation this week. The House is also considering the Paycheck 
Fairness Act, which would strengthen the Equal Pay Act of 1963 by 
providing more effective remedies to women who are not being paid equal 
wages for doing equal work. I strongly support both of these measures.
  Equal pay is not simply a women's issue, but a family issue. The wage 
gap hurts everyone--husbands, wives, children, and parents--because it 
lowers family incomes that pay for essentials: groceries, energy bills, 
doctors' visits and child care. Furthermore, 41 percent of women supply 
their families' sole source of income.
  It is estimated that if we do nothing, it will take until 2057 to 
close the pay gap. To force women and their families to wait nearly 
another 50 years to receive equal pay for equal work is absolutely 
unacceptable. I pledge to continue the fight for pay equity until all 
Americans, regardless of gender or race, receive equal pay for equal 
work.

                          ____________________