Paycheck Fairness Act

Floor Speech

PAYCHECK FAIRNESS ACT -- (House of Representatives - January 09, 2009)

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Ms. SLAUGHTER. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, I appreciate it very much.

Mr. Speaker, when I graduated from the University of Kentucky with both a bachelor's degree and a master's degree, I believed at that time that it was perfectly fine to discriminate against women. Do you know why we were discriminated against in our wages, even though we had gone to the same classes, we had earned the same degree from the University of Kentucky, but women were told we were worth half as much because we might get married and we might have children. Therefore, there was no point in making any investment whatever in us. I believed that up until the point where I became the mother of three daughters and the grandmother of two young women.

I first got involved in this as at the 1972 Democratic convention. At that time we all wore little buttons that said 59 cents on the dollar. That's what we were paid then 40 years ago. How far have we come? Up from 59 to 77 cents.

I cannot for the life of me believe that anyone would be opposed to this bill, knowing that in almost every American family both parents work to try to make ends meet. Why should one of them be cheated? Isn't that a cheat on the family?

My anger knows no bounds. I am so grateful this is up today. Forty years is long enough to wait.

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