At two previous jobs, I was paid less than male colleagues when we were doing equal work and even started our positions on the same day. I could have been fired for talking about my pay over happy hour with my colleagues. Fortunately, both my employers remedied the situation. One even gave me a retroactive raise. If it's happened to me, it may have happened to you.
Today is Equal Pay Day, the day on which the average woman finally caught up to what the average man earned in 2009. How is that possible? The US Census finds that nationally women are only paid 77 cents for every dollar a man earns.
The Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Act gives women who are victims of pay discrimination their day in court. But legislation is needed to ensure that workers and businesses have the tools to rectify wage discrimination before the matter ever gets to court. After all, what do you do if you are being discriminated against but don't want to sue? The Paycheck Fairness Act would do just that. It would:
- Protect workers from retaliation if they discuss pay and act to end wage gaps on the job;
- Require employers to justify why men and women are paid differently if they are in fact paid differently for the same or similar positions;
- Increase resources for the US Dept. of Labor to do training and enforcement of paycheck fairness; and
- Strengthen penalties for employers who persist in pay discrimination.
Maine passed a
law last year to help protect Maine workers, but national action is needed to protect workers across the country. The House of Representatives has passed the
Paycheck Fairness Ac t. Many thanks to Congresswoman Chellie Pingree and Mike Michaud for their support of women and families. Today, the
ACLU of MAINE sent a letter to the Senators Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe asking them to support the Paycheck Fairness Act, S. 182, in the Senate.
It's a matter of fairness -- not just for women, but for their entire families. In these difficult economic times, everyone should receive equal pay for equal work. As our coalition partner,
Executive Director Sarah Standiford of Maine Women's Lobby , wrote in an
editorial last week,