news

Representative Paul Tonko (D-NY) joined Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) today in reintroducing the Paycheck Fairness Act, legislation which would help close the wage gap between women and men working the same jobs. On average, women make just 78 cents for every dollar made by a man nationwide.

“The gender pay gap is not just a problem for women. This is an issue for every family in the Capital Region and across the country that is trying to put food on the table, clothe and educate their children, and pay for other essentials like medicine or heating oil. The Paycheck Fairness Act will offer real protections to ensure equal pay for equal work and see that our mothers, sisters, and daughters are paid the same as the other half of our nation’s workforce for the same job,” said Rep. Tonko.

The Paycheck Fairness Act builds upon the landmark Equal Pay Act signed into law in 1963 by closing loopholes that have kept it from achieving its goal of equal pay. The bill would require employers to show pay disparity is truly related to job performance, not gender.

It also prohibits employer retaliation for sharing salary information with coworkers. Under current law employers can sue and punish employees for sharing such information. In addition, it strengthens remedies for pay discrimination by increasing compensation women can seek, allowing them to seek both back pay and punitive damages for pay discrimination.

The bill empowers women in the workplace through a grant program to strengthen salary negotiation and other workplace skills, and requires the Department of Labor to enhance outreach and training efforts to eliminate pay disparities.

President Obama’s first bill, signed into law on January 29, 2009, was the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which overturned the 180-day statute of limitations for women to contest pay discrimination. The Paycheck Fairness Act would close the loopholes that allow pay discrimination to continue in the first place and, with Ledbetter, provide employees the rights they need to challenge and eliminate pay discrimination in the workplace.

The Paycheck Fairness Act has been endorsed by President Obama, Lilly Ledbetter and a coalition of over 300 advocacy groups.

# # #