On This Equal Pay Day, Congressman Boyle Calls for Passage of the Paycheck Fairness Act

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] – As we mark Equal Pay Day today, Congressman Brendan F. Boyle (D-PA-13) is fighting to do more to close the wage gap that still exists between women and men – including passage of the critical Paycheck Fairness Act. Equal Pay Day symbolizes the date that, more than three months into the year, women’s wages finally catch up to what men were paid in the previous year.

“Equal Pay Day is a somber reminder of the intolerably wide wage gulf that still exists between men and women. This is not just a women’s issue – it affects every working family throughout our economy, top to bottom,” stated Congressman Boyle.

According to the National Women’s Law Center, women nationwide and in Pennsylvania still earn only 79 cents on average for every dollar earned by men – despite the fact that the Equal Pay Act will mark its 53rd anniversary in June. A new study finds that women won’t see pay equity with men until 2059 based on the rate that the pay gap has been closing since 1960.

“Today, women make up about half of the workforce. It is wrong that on average they are still being paid less than men,” said Congressman Boyle. “A woman deserves equal pay for equal work. While women’s role in our economy has changed dramatically, America’s workplaces have simply not kept up. This must change.”

“I am a proud cosponsor, along with every other House Democrat, of the critical Paycheck Fairness Act, which is designed to help women finally achieve equal pay for equal work by strengthening and closing loopholes in the Equal Pay Act of 1963,” Congressman Boyle added.

The Paycheck Fairness Act is a central pillar of the House Democrats’ When Women Succeed, America Succeeds: An Economic Agenda for Women and Families. Among its many provisions, it prohibits employer retaliation for sharing salary information with coworkers; requires employers to show that pay disparity is truly job-related, not based on gender; strengthens remedies for women experiencing pay discrimination; and empowers women in the workplace through a grant program to strengthen salary negotiation and other workplace skills.

Unfortunately, just since 2013, House Republicans have voted nine times to block the Paycheck Fairness Act from being considered on the House Floor.

“This Equal Pay Day, I am calling on House Republicans to start working with Democrats to do something real about closing the wage gap – by allowing the House to consider the Paycheck Fairness Act,” Congressman Boyle concluded. “Equal pay is not simply a women’s issue – it is a family issue. We should not rest until we achieve true pay equity for women – ensuring that all American women in the workforce are receiving equal pay for equal work.”

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