Dodd, Mikulski and DeLauro Hold Press Conference on the Paycheck Fairness Act

Senators Chris Dodd (D-CT) and Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) and Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (CT-3) held a press conference today discussing the Paycheck Fairness Act. Dodd, Mikulski and DeLauro were joined at the event by supporters of the bill, including representatives from National Womens Law Center and the American Association of University Women.

The Paycheck Fairness Act would require employers to demonstrate that wage gaps between men and women doing the same work have a business justification and are truly a result of factors other than gender. The bill would prohibit employers from retaliating against employees who share salary information with their co-workers. Additionally, the Paycheck Fairness Act strengthens the Department of Labors (DOL) ability to help women achieve pay equity by requiring DOL to enhance outreach and training efforts to work with employers in order to eliminate pay disparities and to continue to collect and disseminate wage information based on gender. The bill would also create a competitive grant program to provide negotiation skills training programs for girls and women.

In Connecticut, women are paid only 76 cents to every dollar that men are paid, Dodd said. Thats not only discrimination- its robbery. Over a lifetime, that can cost $400,000 to $2 million in lost wages, pensions and Social Security benefits. The time has come to level the playing field once and for all to insist that women be paid what they deserve.

Women make this country run. We are business leaders, entrepreneurs, politicians, mothers and more, Mikulski said. Yet we still earn just 78 cents for every dollar our male counterpart makes. The Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act was necessary to keep the courthouse door open for victims of pay discrimination, but we need the Paycheck Fairness Act to stop discrimination from happening in the workplace in the first place. By giving new teeth and a much needed update to the Equal Pay Act, this bill will help empower women to negotiate for equal pay, create strong incentives for employers to obey the laws already in place, and strengthen enforcement.

To truly close the wage gap between men and women we must face gender discrimination head-on and eliminate the systemic discrimination faced by women. We can do that with the Paycheck Fairness Act, said Congresswoman DeLauro. The House of Representatives has already passed it. And with Senators Chris Dodd and Barbara Mikulski in the Senate two tenacious leaders who know a thing or two about passing legislation into law and dedicated advocates all across America standing up for equal pay, we will get this done. We will pass the Paycheck Fairness Act, send it President Obama for his signature and give teeth to the Equal Pay Act and make certain that women have the tools they need to get equal pay for equal work.

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