[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 4]
[House]
[Page 5092]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                   GENDER DISPARITIES IN COMPENSATION

  (Mr. POLIS asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. POLIS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in observation of Equal Pay Day, 
a day that signifies, to a degree, how far we've come with regard to 
breaking the glass ceiling and providing opportunities for all 
Americans, regardless of gender, but it also reminds us how far we have 
to go, how far we have to go before parity is reached.
  For every dollar earned by a man, for the same job, women continue to 
earn only 77 cents. That extra difference--thousands of dollars a year 
of income for working families--constitutes a lot of groceries or a lot 
of gas money that men can buy for the same work that women are 
undercompensated for.
  I was proud that one of my first votes in the United States Congress 
in the 111th Congress was to pass the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act.
  But we are not yet there in reaching gender parity in this country 
and ensuring that every American, regardless of their gender, has 
access to the same opportunity and the same compensation. That's why I 
introduced the Women WIN Jobs Act, along with Rosa DeLauro, which helps 
train women for high-paying jobs.
  I ask my colleagues to continue to address the disparities in 
compensation among the genders.

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