All Women’s Equal Pay Day, March 24, 2021! Paycheck Fairness Act: An AAUW Response

AAUW (American Association of University Women) has advocated and worked tirelessly in support of the Paycheck Fairness Act for more than 20 years and we continue to fight today for pay equity for all. In Minnesota, we are encouraged by the legislative progress to close the gender pay gap. But there is more that must be achieved nationally by the support and passage of the Paycheck Fairness Act.

All Women’s Equal Pay Day is March 24. This date symbolizes how far into the year the average woman must work in order to earn what the average man earns in the previous year regardless of experience or job type. The gender pay gap refers to the fact that on average, women working full time in the United States are paid just 82% of what men are paid, and the gap is even greater for many women of color.

Despite the passage of some equal pay laws, gender and racial pay gaps persist, and earnings lost to these gaps are exacerbated by the financial effects of COVID-19. These effects are falling particularly heavily on women of color and the families who depend on their income. Black women, Latinas, and other women of color are especially likely to be on the front lines of the pandemic crisis, risking their lives in jobs in health care, child care, and grocery stores; they are also being paid less than their male counterparts. Help women build economic security.

The Paycheck Fairness Act passed the U.S. House of Representatives in a bipartisan vote last Congress, but never made it to the floor in the U.S. Senate. The Paycheck Fairness Act will close the pay gap for good and we look forward to getting it passed this Congress.

As we celebrate Equal Pay Day, AAUW Hastings Branch urges all members of Congress to support the Paycheck Fairness Act. This critical legislation will help women, their families, and our overall economy rebound from the current crisis by guaranteeing equal pay for equal work. The time has come to make equal pay for equal work a reality!

AAUW Hastings Branch, President Lisa Hedin By V.P. Public Policy Pat Powers and Gail Glashan