WASHINGTON, DC – Congressman Jim Himes (CT-4) released the following statement on Equal Pay Day. In order to make the same salary in 2013 for working the same job as a man, the average woman needed to continue working until April 8, 2014 – an additional 98 days.
“As a father of two girls, there is nothing I want more than to create a better future for the next generation of women. But equal pay is not simply a woman’s issue—it’s a family issue. Families increasingly rely on women’s wages to make ends meet, and when that woman is bringing in less money each day, it means that family has less to spend on things like groceries, gasoline, and doctors’ visits. In the weeks and months ahead, I will continue fighting for equal pay and supporting legislation that ensures equality for women in the workplace.”
The average woman in Connecticut’s Fourth District makes only 72 cents for every dollar the average man makes working the same job – below the national average of 77 cents per dollar. Himes is a cosponsor of the Paycheck Fairness Act (H.R. 377), sponsored by Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro, which allows the victims of gender-based pay discrimination equal claim for civil action as those receiving discriminatory pay based on race. It also expands the basis by which discrimination can be claimed by broadening pay comparison methods and protecting employees who discuss pay information with each other from retaliation by their employer.