Sex Discrimination

March 11, 2010 -- Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT) released the following statement today as the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee (HELP) conducted a hearing on pay equity in the workplace. Dodd is the author of legislation, the Paycheck Fairness Act, that would help women achieve pay equity by giving them stronger legal footing when they need to take their employers to court over wage discrimination.

At the hearing, Dodd introduced the first panelist to testify, Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (D-CT-3). Dodd and DeLauro, along with Senator Barbara Mikulski (D-MD), have been leading the fight for the passage of the Paycheck Fairness Act in the Senate and House of Representatives.    » read more »

The World Economic Forum’s Corporate Gender Gap Report 2010 found that the world’s biggest employers are losing out on female talent

New York, USA, 8 March 2010 – Leading companies are failing to capitalize on the talents of women in the workforce, according to the World Economic Forum’s Corporate Gender Gap Report 2010. It is the first study to cover the world’s largest employers in 20 countries and benchmark them against the gender equality policies that most companies should have in place but are, in fact, widely missing.    » read more »

January 26, 2010 -- Washington, DC -- Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (CT-3) and Senator Chris Dodd celebrated the one-year anniversary of the passage of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act today with Marcia Greenberger, Co-President, National Women’s Law Center, and the namesake of the legislation, Lilly Ledbetter.

Via teleconference, Congresswoman DeLauro and Senator Dodd spoke of the successes of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, and the need for further steps to ensure equal pay for equal work.    » read more »

Nordic countries continue to have the smallest equality gaps between men and women

New York, USA, 27 October – Iceland (1) has claimed the top spot of the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Index 2009 from Norway (3) which slipped to third position behind Finland (2). Sweden (4) completed the Nordic countries’ continued dominance of the top four. The report’s Index assesses countries on how well they are dividing their resources and opportunities among their male and female populations, regardless of the overall levels of these resources and opportunities.    » read more »

Letter Urges Negotiators Merging Senate HELP and Finance Health Care Reform Bills to Include Provisions Ending Discrimination Across All Insurance Markets

October 26, 2009 -- Michael Bennet, U.S. Senator for Colorado and member of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, is pushing to bring an end to discriminatory health insurance industry practices that unfairly deny coverage to women.

In a letter to Senate leaders responsible for merging the HELP and Finance committee bills into one comprehensive Senate bill, Bennet and other HELP Committee members urged the leaders to include provisions eliminating gender rating and discrimination based on pre-existing conditions and to ensure that these provisions apply to all insurance markets in a timely manner.    » read more »

Sánchez Works to Make Similar Federal Law

October 14, 2009 -- Washington, DC - Rep. Linda Sánchez (D-CA), applauded California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger for signing state legislation into law to end gender discrimination in health insurance premiums. The new law will prevent health insurers from charging men and women different rates for the same health insurance policies in the individual market.    » read more »

Mikulski led Senate fight to pass new law protecting equal work for equal pay

15-Sep-2009 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Barbara A. Mikulski (D-Md.) today praised the recent use of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act to protect equal work for equal pay. The Third Circuit Court of Appeals recently used the new law to hold that a Title VII claim was erroneously dismissed on the basis that the claim was not filed in a timely manner.

“This decision does exactly what the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act was signed into law to do-- right a terrible wrong,” said Senator Mikulski, the lead sponsor of the bill who fought for its passage on the Senate floor.    » read more »

16-Jun-2009 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senators Barbara A. Mikulski (D-Md.) and Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) today issued a letter requesting their Senate colleagues support the Paycheck Fairness Act, which builds on the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act and Equal Pay Act to help end gender discrimination in the workplace.    » read more »

04/28/2009 -- WASHINGTON — U.S. Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis today made the following statement on equal pay:

"One of the most fundamental principles on which our nation was founded is the belief that we are all created equal.

"Yet today, women earn just 78 cents for every dollar a man earns. Women of color earn even less. Countless women are losing thousands of dollars in salary, income and retirement savings over the course of a lifetime. As a result, women often must work longer or harder to make ends meet.

"As the secretary of labor, I am committed to ensuring that the women in our country and around the world have a voice and advocate.    » read more »

New York State MWBE Task Force Delivers Preliminary Report Outlining Sharp Improvement in the Rate at which State-supported Debt Issuers Empanel and Engage Minority and Women Owned Businesses

April 28, 2009 -- The New York State Minority and Women Owned Business Enterprise (MWBE) Task Force today delivered its preliminary report to Governor David A. Paterson. The Task Force, established by Executive Order No. 10, reviewed the debt-issuing practices of the five authorities which issue State-supported debt, and wrote recommendations designed to improve their performance in retaining MWBE underwriting firms. The Task Force’s final report is due to the Governor in January, 2010.    » read more »

April 28, 2009 -- DES MOINES – Iowa Governor Chet Culver today signed Senate File 137, a bill that mandates pay equity in Iowa’s workplaces. During the ceremony, the Governor also signed a proclamation declaring Equal Pay Day in Iowa to highlight the need for greater fairness in our state.

“Our state has a long history of identifying, and protecting the rights of individuals, not just in the workplace, but in every field,” said Governor Culver. “Wage discrimination is wrong. From this day forward, discrimination of this nature is, plain and simple, illegal. By doing so, we are living up to our progressive history, and moving Iowa forward – toward our common goal of equality under the law.”    » read more »

Study also covers the impact of the economic crisis on women’s jobs and incomes and reveals costs of violence against women

March 05, 2009 -- (Washington, DC) - - A new report released by the ITUC for March 8, International Women’s Day, has revealed that the pay gap between men and women worldwide may be much higher than official government figures. The report, “Gender (in)Equality in the Labour Market”, is based on survey results of some 300,000 women and men in 20 countries. It puts the global pay gap at up to 22%, rather than the 16.5% figure taken from official government figures and released by the ITUC on March 8 last year.    » read more »

East Room -- January 29, 2009 -- THE PRESIDENT: All right. Everybody please have a seat. Well, this is a wonderful day. (Applause.) First of all, it is fitting that the very first bill that I sign -- the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Restoration Act -- (applause) -- that it is upholding one of this nation's founding principles: that we are all created equal, and each deserve a chance to pursue our own version of happiness.    » read more »

January 29, 2009 -- Washington, DC – AARP praised President Obama and Congress for their expeditious handling of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009, calling the legislation an “important breakthrough” in the fight against discrimination.

The bill was signed into law today by the President in the first signing ceremony of his Administration. With bipartisan cooperation, the new Congress demonstrated its resolve to protect against discrimination in the workplace, advancing the legislation within the past three weeks. The House gave final approval Tuesday.    » read more »

January 29, 2009 -- OLYMPIA – Washington Governor Chris Gregoire today released the following statement on the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, signed today by President Obama:

“I want to thank President Obama for quickly signing this bill into law. This legislation ensures that all hard-working Americans are compensated fairly, no matter their gender, race, religion, disability or age.

“It is imperative that we support all those who show up to work everyday to provide for their families and create a better future for their children. Especially during a recession, every worker deserves a fair day’s pay.”

Source: Washington Governor