WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Rep. George Miller (D-CA), the chair of the House Education and Labor Committee, issued the following statement on Equal Pay Day, which falls today.
“As we continue working to rebuild our economy and get every American who has lost a job back to work, we must also work to restore the promise of equal pay for equal work. Equal pay for equal work isn’t just a matter of basic fairness, but a smart strategy for economic growth: Paying women the higher incomes they have rightfully earned will boost families’ purchasing power and consumer spending. In the year 2010 there simply is no moral or economic justification for paying women less than men for doing the same job.
“There are two steps that can finally put an end to this injustice. The Democratic Congress and the Obama administration took the first step last year by enacting the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act. It’s time for the Senate to join the House in taking the second step by passing the Paycheck Fairness Act. If we’re serious about restoring the American Dream, then we have to ensure that every American who works hard for a living can earn a fair and decent wage.”
Equal Pay Day commemorates how far into the year a woman must work in order for her wages to equal those of a man in the previous year.
During the first few weeks of the 111th Congress, the House passed both the Ledbetter Fair Pay Act and the Paycheck Fairness Act, but the Senate passed only the Ledbetter legislation. The Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act became the first major bill signed by President Obama.
Learn more about the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act
Learn more about the Paycheck Fairness Act
“There are two steps that can finally put an end to this injustice. The Democratic Congress and the Obama administration took the first step last year by enacting the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act. It’s time for the Senate to join the House in taking the second step by passing the Paycheck Fairness Act. If we’re serious about restoring the American Dream, then we have to ensure that every American who works hard for a living can earn a fair and decent wage.”
Equal Pay Day commemorates how far into the year a woman must work in order for her wages to equal those of a man in the previous year.
During the first few weeks of the 111th Congress, the House passed both the Ledbetter Fair Pay Act and the Paycheck Fairness Act, but the Senate passed only the Ledbetter legislation. The Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act became the first major bill signed by President Obama.
Learn more about the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act
Learn more about the Paycheck Fairness Act
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