Senate Won’t Consider Paycheck Fairness Act

Today a minority of senators blocked the Paycheck Fairness Act (PFA) from coming to the Senate floor for a vote.  

The Paycheck Fairness Act updates and strengthens the Equal Pay Act
of 1963 (EPA), which made it illegal for employers to pay unequal wages
to men and women who perform substantially the same work. 

PFA has been a major priority of the civil and human rights
community.  In a statement following today’s vote, Nancy Zirkin,
executive vice president of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human
Rights, said:

“The decision by a minority of senators to block consideration of the
Paycheck Fairness Act (PFA) is extremely troubling, especially in these
trying economic times. PFA, which passed the House overwhelmingly more
than a year ago, would have given women and the families who rely on
them effective tools to fight pay discrimination and ensure that they
receive equal wages to men who perform substantially the same work.

Pay discrimination is real and it must be addressed. Women make up
half of our workforce and their wages make up an increasing share of
family incomes, yet women who work full time still earn, on average,
only 77 cents for every dollar men earn. In 2008, women were 35 percent
more likely to live in poverty than men. The statistics are even worse
for women of color. Ensuring equal pay would mean basic fairness for
women and their families, more food on family tables, more revenue for
our businesses, and more economic stability for the country.

Our coalition, including many faith, labor, civil rights, and women’s
organizations, worked tirelessly to pass this bill and remain committed
to eliminating gender-based pay discrimination. We commend the members
of Congress who championed and supported PFA. While we’ve made some
progress during the 111th Congress, today’s vote indicates that we are
still have far to go in recognizing the contributions that women make to
our economy and our society.”