The paycheck fairness act, introduced in both the house h. The paycheck fairness act would force employers to report employees salaries to the government and allow employees to use that information, without valuable context, as. The bill aims to strengthen equal pay protections for women by expanding upon the equal pay act. Improving equal pay act remedies the act toughens the remedy provisions of the epa by. Enactment of the paycheck fairness act is critical to help realize the decadesold promise of equal pay for equal work. The paycheck fairness act will be the hammer behind the nail put into place by the. The gender wage gap persists women working fulltime, yearround earn only about 77 cents for every dollar eamed by men, only a slight improvement from 76 cents in 2003. A procedural maneuver to bring companion legislation to the house floor. Paycheck fairness act, a bill designed to raise womens wages. But sadly, the bill is based on the misguided assumption that all employers are sexist, and it. Pay disparities depress the wages of working women and families trying to make ends meet. A bill to amend the fair labor standards act of 1938 to provide more effective remedies to victims of discrimination in the payment of wages on the basis of sex, and for other purposes. House of representatives by a vote of 256 to 163 on january 9, 2009.
These pay disparities exist in both the private and governmental sectors. Despite the enactment of the equal pay act of 1963, many women continue to earn significantly lower pay than men for equal work. The federal paycheck fairness act, which seeks to expand the protections of the equal pay act of 1963, has been introduced in congress in every congressional session for the past 20 years. Pay discrimination also occurs when a difference in pay has an unlawful basis such as race or sex. Help ensure the department of labor dol uses the full range of investigatory tools.
By the end of the 1st session, the house bill had 193 cosponsors. What is the paycheck fairness act amazon web services. Paycheck fairness act would have drastic consequences law360. The paycheck fairness act is necessary to help close the punishing gender wage gap by eliminating loopholes in the equal pay act, helping to break harmful patterns of pay discrimination and strengthening workplace protections for women. The unintended consequences of the paycheck fairness act. Nfib and its members believe in equal pay for equal work. Democrats paycheck fairness act would make them pay some. Prior to world war ii, it was common practice for employers to explicitly. The employment effects of the paycheck fairness act. The paycheck fairness act pa was reintroduced in the house and senate in march 2015 as h. In many instances, the pay disparities can only be due to continued.
For enforcement agencies, the paycheck fairness act would. The 111th congress first introduced the paycheck fairness act in 2009 as s. The paycheck fairness act like many bills considered by congress has a nice name. The paycheck fairness act is essential to eradicating practices that have perpetuated the pay gap for far too long. Murray, delauro reintroduce paycheck fairness act to close. The paycheck fairness act middleclass americans are struggling more than ever just to keep up, and when women make less than men for the same work it makes it even harder for working families to succeed. Currently, under the equal pay act, once employees have provided prima facie evidence of sex discrimination in compensation, the burden of proof shifts to the employer to show that the difference in wages results from any factor other than sex. The house of representatives passed the paycheck fairness act on march 27. Paycheck fairness act unfairly burdens employees and.
House democrats passed the lilly ledbetter fair pay act in 2009 to. Pay or compensation discrimination workplace fairness. The paycheck fairness act will strengthen oversight and enforcement mechanisms. This act may be cited as the paycheck fairness act. We urge you to support final passage of the paycheck fairness act s. A census bureau report published in 2008 stated that womens median annual earnings were 77. Aclu factsheet on the paycheck fairness act american.
Both the equal pay act of 1963 and the civil rights act. A report from nelanys gender discrimination committee. Fairness act is necessary to help close the punishing gender wage gap by eliminating. Paycheck fairness act as of jan 23, 20 introduced version. Paycheck fairness act national alliance for partnerships. Moreover, if passed, the paycheck fairness act would have widespread implications. Paycheck fairness act would reduce pay and flexibility in the workplace rachel greszler and james sherk no. The paycheck fairness act of 2009 proposes to strengthen the equal pay act.
Weak remedies for pay discrimination mean that employers can come out ahead by gambling that they wont get caught, but the paycheck fairness act will incentivize employers to stop pay discrimina tion before it happens, by toughening the remedy provisions of the epa. This section states that despite the enactment of the epa, gender based pay disparity still exists and some of the disparity is due to genderbased pay discrimination. Equal pay sounds good, but the paycheck fairness act isnt. Improving equal pay act remedies it shouldnt pay to discriminate. More than 50 years after the passage of the equal pay act, women still only earn 78 cents on every dollar that a man does. The legislation, sponsored by representative rosa delauro dct and. Paycheck fairness act james sherk what is the paycheck fairness act pfa. But while that federal pay equity bill continues to stall along party lines, on june 1, 2017, governor kate brown signed oregons bipartisan pay equity act. The unintended consequences of the paycheck fairness act n 3 this policy paper will consider the causes of the wage gap, and then outline the unintended consequences that would arise from the changes in the paycheck fairness act, and their potential. The paycheck fairness act aims to strengthen equal pay protections for women by expanding upon the equal pay act of 1963 and the fair labor standards act. Recognizes employers for excellence in their pay practices. The pfa will revitalize the role of the department of labor dol and the equal employment oppertunity commission eeoc in combating genderbased discrimination by requiring research, education, outreach, and ready public access to compensation discrimination information. Pay discrimination based on an employees membership in a protected category like race, disability, or sex, is prohibited by anti.
Lilly ledbetter fair pay act of 2009 and paycheck fairness act. Paycheck fairness act law and legal definition uslegal, inc. It is critical for women working today and into the future to. There is established the secretary of labors national award for pay equity in the workplace, which shall be awarded, on an annual basis, to an employer to encourage proactive efforts to comply with section 6d of the fair labor standards act of 1938 29 u. The paycheck fairness act of 2009 pfa 21 was passed by the united states house of representatives the house on january 9, 2009, but has yet to be voted o n by the senate. Its with a heavy heart that i realize that it is ok with me that the paycheck fairness act didnt pass the senate. This legislation will add significant burdens to small businesses and expose them to frivolous lawsuits. In 2004, the median annual earnings of women 15 and. The paycheck fairness act would strengthen and close loopholes in the equal pay act of 1963 by holding employers accountable for discriminatory practices, ending the practice of pay secrecy, easing workers ability to individually or jointly challenge pay discrimination, and strengthening the available remedies for wronged employees.
The paycheck fairness act american bar association. House democrats have embraced the paycheck fairness act in order to address what they say is a pay gap in america between men and women. Paycheck fairness act debated at hls harvard law today. It is a good opportunity for politicians to talk about their interest in workplace fairness. To amend title vii of the civil rights act of 1964 and the age discrimination in employment act of 1967, and to modify the operation of the americans with disabilities act of 1990 and the rehabilitation act of 1973, to clarify that a discriminatory compensation decision or other practice that is unlawful under such acts occurs each time compensation is paid pursuant to the.
Chairman and members of the committee, thank you for this opportunity to testify on s. Support our response to covid19 your gift will fund our critical work to protect voting rights, demand that vulnerable people in prisons, jails and immigration detention centers be released, and fight to ensure reproductive health care remains open and accessible to all who need it. House passes new bill aimed at closing the gender pay gap. The purpose of the bill is to stop retaliation against employees who share or seek wage information and close a loophole that some employers use to avoid paying women equal wages. This section states that despite the enactment of the epa, gender basedpay disparity still exists and some of the disparity is due to genderbased pay discrimination. In the name of protecting women from discrimination, the act permits the government and the. On behalf of nfib, the nations leading small business. Yet democrats hope to pass a new federal law the paycheck fairness act pfa during the lame duck session before their majorities erode in the next congress. However, nfib does not believe that this legislation is the solution. How the paycheck fairness a ct will strengthen the equal pay a ct f act sheet how the paycheck fairness act will strengthen the equal pay act may 2012 fact sheet employment the paycheck fairness act, introduced in both the house h. President obama on tuesday called for the senate to pass the paycheck fairness act, calling it a common sense bill. Act of 1964 amended just last year by the lilly ledbetter fair pay act. Paycheck fairness act background part of a broader package of bills concerned with pay discrimination, including the lilly ledbetter act passed in 2009 and the fair pay act, the paycheck fairness act has been introduced in every congress starting in the 105 th congress 19971998 and was passed by the house in 2009 with 200 cosponsors. The debate between genevieve wood of the heritage foundation, the conservative thinktank, and langdell professor of law martha field centered on the paycheck fairness act, proposed legislation aimed at expanding the equal pay act of 1963, on september 15th of this year, the paycheck fairness act failed to pass in congress for the fourth time.
The act provided remedies to victims of discriminatory practices regarding the payment of wages on the basis of ones gender. The paycheck fairness act would force employers to report employees salaries to the government and allow employees to use that information, without valuable context, as a weapon against employers. Paycheck fairness act law and legal definition the paycheck fairness act is an effort to address malefemale income disparity in the u. Improving equal pay act remedies the act toughens the remedy provisions of the epa by allowing prevailing plaintiffs. The landmark equal pay act of 1963 made it illegal for employers to pay. Paycheck fairness act stalls in senate littler mendelson. Pay or compensation discrimination occurs when employees performing similar work do not receive similar pay.
765 257 1266 33 883 1190 595 1406 1174 166 41 86 1190 550 291 115 183 851 306 398 569 1521 691 901 1530 613 50 1357 1085 584 564 1451 884 970 1069 1086 123 820 290 1367 647 197 1176 1133 1078