[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 68 (Friday, April 9, 1999)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 17499-17500]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-9148]



[[Page 17497]]

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Part VI





The President





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Proclamation 7179--National Equal Pay Day, 1999
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  Federal Register / Vol. 64, No. 68 / Friday, April 9, 1999 / 
Presidential Documents  

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 Title 3--
 The President

[[Page 17499]]

                Proclamation 7179 of April 7, 1999

                
National Equal Pay Day, 1999

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                We live in a time of remarkable promise. Our Nation's 
                economy is the strongest we have experienced in a 
                generation, creating more than 18 million new jobs 
                since 1993 and the fastest growth in real wages in more 
                than two decades. American women have contributed 
                greatly to this record of success; unfortunately, they 
                have not enjoyed an equal share in the prosperity they 
                have helped to create.

                The typical woman who works full-time year-round earns 
                approximately 75 cents for every dollar the typical man 
                earns. An African American woman earns just 65 cents 
                and a Hispanic woman earns 55 cents for each dollar 
                that a white man earns. In the course of a week, this 
                pay gap can mean one less bag of groceries, skipping a 
                trip to the doctor, missing a rent payment, or not 
                being able to pay for day care. Over the course of a 
                working lifetime, it can mean thousands of dollars, a 
                smaller pension, and fewer savings to provide for a 
                comfortable retirement. And when a working woman is 
                denied equal pay, it doesn't just hurt her; it also 
                hurts her family. In more than 10 million American 
                households today, the mother is the only breadwinner.

                Americans have always believed in justice and equality. 
                We have always believed that those who work hard should 
                be able to provide a decent living for themselves and 
                their children. If we are to live up to those ideals, 
                we must ensure that women do not suffer wage 
                discrimination. We must continue vigorous enforcement 
                of existing laws, such as the Equal Pay Act and Title 
                VII of the Civil Rights Act, so that no employer 
                undervalues or underpays the work performed by women. 
                To strengthen Department of Labor and Equal Employment 
                Opportunity Commission efforts to end wage 
                discrimination and expand opportunities in the 
                workplace for women, my Administration has included a 
                $14 million Equal Pay Initiative in my proposed 
                balanced budget for fiscal year 2000. This initiative 
                will provide more resources to identify wage 
                discrimination, to educate workers and employers about 
                their rights and responsibilities, and to bring more 
                women into better-paying jobs. We will also work with 
                the Congress to pass the proposed Paycheck Fairness 
                Act--legislation designed to strengthen laws that 
                prohibit wage discrimination.

                As we observe National Equal Pay Day, let us reaffirm 
                our commitment to justice and equality in the 
                workplace, and let us build a Nation for the 21st 
                century where the talents, efforts, and hard work of 
                American women will be rightly appreciated and fairly 
                rewarded.

                NOW, THEREFORE, I, WILLIAM J. CLINTON, President of the 
                United States of America, by virtue of the authority 
                vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United 
                States of America, do hereby proclaim April 8, 1999, as 
                National Equal Pay Day. I call upon Government 
                officials, law enforcement agencies, business leaders, 
                educators, and the American people to recognize the 
                full value of the skills and contributions of women in 
                the labor force. I urge all employers to review their 
                wage practices and to ensure that all their employees 
                are paid equitably for their work.

[[Page 17500]]

                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                seventh day of April, in the year of our Lord nineteen 
                hundred and ninety-nine, and of the Independence of the 
                United States of America the two hundred and twenty-
                third.

                    (Presidential Sig.)

[FR Doc. 99-9148
Filed 4-8-99; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3195-01-P