LIHU‘E — The Kaua‘i Committee on the Status of Women members wore red to demonstrate support of Equal Pay Day, this year to be celebrated April 20. Women continue to earn only 78 cents compared to $1 earned by male
LIHU‘E — The Kaua‘i Committee on the Status of Women members wore red to demonstrate support of Equal Pay Day, this year to be celebrated April 20.
Women continue to earn only 78 cents compared to $1 earned by male counterparts in similar positions, with minority women facing an even larger wage gap, states a proclamation celebrating Equal Pay Day issued by Kaua‘i Mayor Bernard Carvalho Jr.
Almost 47 years have passed since the passage of the Equal Pay Act into law, making it illegal for employers to pay unequal wages to men and women who perform substantially equal work.
Equal Pay Day was originated by the National Committee on Pay Equity to symbolize how far into the current year a woman must work to earn as much as a man doing similar work earned in the previous year.
Figures were based on the U.S. Census Bureau statistics on median wages of full-time, year-round workers, with the wage gap between men and women remaining unchanged since the turn of the century.
Enforcement of the Equal Pay Act and other civil-rights laws has helped to narrow the wage gap, but significant disparities still affect women of all ages, races and education levels, according to the proclamation.
The Paycheck Fairness Act which passed the U.S. House last year was designed to strengthen the Equal Pay Act, and President Barack Obama’s administration is working to advance pay equity in the United States.
The first bill Obama signed into law as president was the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009, which advances the struggle, allowing more women to challenge pay discrimination by extending the timeline during which complaints can be filed.
Pay equity is a growing national movement, and states throughout the country are introducing pay-equity legislation, Carvalho’s proclamation states.
Women recognize the importance of this legislation because fair pay strengthens the security of families and eases future retirement costs while enhancing the American economy, states the proclamation.
• Dennis Fujimoto, staff writer and photographer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 253) or dfujimoto@kauaipubco.com.
