[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 55 (Tuesday, April 17, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E553]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      OBSERVANCE OF EQUAL PAY DAY

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. JANICE D. SCHAKOWSKY

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, April 17, 2012

  Ms. SCHAKOWSKY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today, in recognition of Equal 
Pay Day, a day that spotlights the financial struggles that women must 
endure because of wage discrimination and the need to close the gender-
based wage gap once and for all.
  The answer is simple. Women should be paid equal wages to their male 
counterparts: pay discrimination is unfair, unwarranted and costly.
  Equal pay is not only a fight for women, but for the families that 
depend on them. Women are the primary or co-breadwinners in six out of 
ten households; yet earn only 77 cents to every dollar paid to men. 
With smaller paychecks, women are forced to stretch limited dollars 
even further to provide healthcare, food, and shelter for themselves 
and their families.
  According to a report by the National Partnership for Women & 
Families, women across the country are collectively losing tens of 
billions of dollars annually because of wage inequity. Over a 40 year 
working career, the average woman loses $431,000 as a result of the 
wage gap. This picture is even worse for African American and Hispanic 
women, who earn 71 cents and 62 cents respectively for every dollar men 
are paid.
  In the 21st century, it seems unbelievable that equal pay is 
controversial. Yet, just last week, Wisconsin signed into law 
legislation to repeal provisions of the 2009 Equal Pay Enforcement Act. 
This Congress has the opportunity to build on the progress made by the 
passage of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act--legislation to strengthen 
pay discrimination lawsuits and the first bill ever signed into law by 
President Obama. The Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act clarified that each 
paycheck resulting from a discriminatory pay decision would constitute 
a new violation of the employment nondiscrimination law and restart the 
clock for filing a claim.
  The Paycheck Fairness Act, legislation currently being considered in 
this Congress, would go even further to fight pay discrimination and 
improve wages for women. The Paycheck Fairness Act, sponsored by my 
friend and colleague Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro, would strengthen the 
Equal Pay Act by requiring an employer to prove that a difference in 
pay between a man and a woman for the same position is not sex-based. 
The legislation would also bring the equal pay law into line with all 
other civil rights law by increasing the available remedies to include 
punitive and compensatory damages. As a co-sponsor, I believe the 
Paycheck Fairness Act is essential legislation to address the lingering 
injustice of pay inequity.
  As our economy shows signs of revival, women and their families must 
not be left behind. We must send a strong message that pay 
discrimination should not stand.

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