[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 5]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 6978]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                       IN HONOR OF EQUAL PAY DAY

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. MICHAEL M. HONDA

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, April 19, 2005

  Mr. HONDA. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in honor of Equal Pay Day.
  Today I join the millions of women workers and local advocates across 
America to fight for justice and fairness in our wages. Today 
symbolizes the day when women have to work longer hours each week for 
the same amount of pay that a man would earn in just 5 working days.
  It is disappointing to know that it has been 40 years since President 
John F. Kennedy signed the Equal Pay Act in 1963, yet the wage gap 
between men and women persists. Forty years ago, women who worked full-
time made 59 cents on average for every dollar earned by men. In 2004, 
women earned 77 cents to the dollar. The wage gap has barely narrowed 
in these past 40 years, even though women have the same education, 
skills and experience as men.
  The disparity in wages between women of color and white men is even 
worse. In 2003, Asian Pacific American women earned 80 cents for every 
dollar that men earned. African American women earned only 66 cents and 
Hispanic American women earned 59 cents for every dollar that men 
earned.
  Although working women in my home State of California are farther 
along the road to equal pay than women in many States, the wage gap is 
still there. In 2000, California's working women earned only 82.5 
percent as much per hour as men.
  At the current rate of change, working women in California won't have 
equal pay until 2044. Nationwide, women won't achieve equal pay until 
2050.
  It is distressing to know that it will take 87 years since the Equal 
Pay Act before there is pay equity.
  Now is the time for our country to fix this problem and to move 
forward in addressing this issue.
  As Chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, I have 
joined with my colleagues in the Congressional Black Caucus, the 
Congressional Hispanic Caucus, the Native American Caucus, the Women's 
Caucus and Democratic Leadership to move forward in addressing this 
problem by cosponsoring the Paycheck Fairness Act.
  The Paycheck Fairness Act, introduced by Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro 
would take the steps needed to eliminate gender based wage 
discrimination and ensure that women will finally earn what men earn 
for doing the same job.
  I urge you to join me in cosponsoring this important legislation.
  We must remember that equal pay isn't just a women's issue--when 
women get equal pay, their family incomes rise and the whole family 
benefits. Equal pay is about fairness.

                          ____________________