Today, Republican Senators in a 58-41 vote, prevented legislation that would have closed the pay gap between women and men from finally being brought up for a debate and receiving a vote. The Paycheck Fairness Act, passed in the House almost two years ago, would have ended discriminatory pay practices against women.
In reacting to the vote, President Obama said that he was deeply disappointed that a “partisan minority of Senators blocked this commonsense law”, which would have “ensured that American women and their families aren’t bringing home smaller paycheck because of discrimination”, at a time when the economy was emerging from one of the worst recessions in history.
Despite the passage of the Equal Pay Act forty-five years ago, women still earn on average 77 cents to every dollar a man makes. The National Women’s Law Center said, “This persistent pay gap translates to more than $10,000 in lost wages per year for the average female worker.” The gap is even worse for women of color: African-American women earn 61 cents and Latinas earn 52 cents for every dollar a white non-Hispanic man earns.
Despite today’s vote, Obama said that his Administration will continue to fight for a woman’s right to equal pay for equal work.
