Smith Statement on Equal Pay Day
Washington D.C. –Congressman Adam Smith released the following statement on Equal Pay Day:
“We must close the gender pay gap. Despite the many positive transformative changes in our nation’s workforce, women still get paid less for equal work and make 79 cents for every dollar earned compared to their male counterparts. This disparity particularly impacts women of color and cannot continue.
“Equal Pay Day symbolizes how much more the average woman in the United States must work to earn what a man earned in the previous year. April 12th marks these extra 103 days, a day where we recognize how much work remains to achieve pay equality. In addition to wage disparities, women are shut out of leadership and management roles far too often. As women continue to make up a growing percentage of our workforce, the gender wage gap is an increasing burden to working families and will limit our nation’s future economic success.
“As we recognize Equal Pay Day, we must continue fighting for policies that move us towards a fairer and more equal society. Congress must implement policies that address the wage gap, such as the Paycheck Fairness Act. I am a proud cosponsor of this legislation that would help ensure women are paid equally for equal work. We also must expand access to affordable child care and paid family leave that can further help women enter and remain in the workforce. When women succeed, America succeeds.”