Menendez, Booker Introduce Black Women's Equal Pay Day Resolution

Press Release

U.S. Senators Bob Menendez and Cory Booker (both D-N.J.) yesterday joined their colleagues in introducing a resolution marking Black Women's Equal Pay Day in the United States Senate and the House of Representatives, respectively. The concurrent resolution recognizes the significance of equal pay and the disparity in wages paid to men and to Black women.

"Black women deserve to be compensated equally for their hard work. They are breadwinners and providers for themselves and their families and also for their communities. Black women are invaluable to our country and they must be treated as such by receiving fair and equal wages," said Sen. Menendez. "I am honored to join my colleagues in introducing the Black Women's Equal Pay Day Resolution and I will continue to protect the dignity of work for Black women in New Jersey and nationwide as our country strives to match fair wages to hard work."

"It is unacceptable that stark pay disparities persist for Black women in America," said Sen. Booker. "The value of Black women's work must be recognized with equal compensation and I am proud to join my colleagues in introducing this important resolution calling for an end to this unjust wage disparity."

Despite the passage of the Equal Pay Act of 1963 five decades ago, which requires that men and women in the same workplace be paid equally for equal work, Census Bureau data shows that nationwide Black women working full-time, year-round, are paid 63 cents for every dollar paid to White, non-Hispanic men. The median annual pay for a Black woman in the United States working full-time, year-round, is $41,098, or $24,110 less than average male counterparts--which means that, on average, Black women lose nearly $964,400 in potential earnings over the course of a 40-year. If current trends continue, on average, Black women will have to wait 100 years to achieve pay equity with their white, male counterparts.

Sens. Reverend Warnock (D-Ga.), Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisc.), Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), Ben Cardin (D-Md), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill), Dick Durbin (D-Ill), Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii),Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore) also sponsored this resolution.

Organizations endorsing the resolution include: Women Employed, National Partnership for Women & Families, National Urban League, American Association of University Women (AAUW), MomsRising, The National Council of Negro Women, Inc. (NCNW), Center for American Progress, ERA Coalition, Equal Pay Today, Equal Rights Advocates, National Women's Law Center, A Better Balance, United State of Women (USOW), Clearinghouse on Women's Issues, Feminist Majority Foundation, National Council of Jewish Women, Women's Law Project, National Organization for Women, Methodist Federation for Social Action, Time's Up Now, In Our Own Voice: National Black Women's Reproductive Justice Agenda, NARAL Pro-Choice America, UltraViolet, The WAGE Project, Inc., Chicago foundation for women (CFW), URGE: Unite for Reproductive & Gender Equity, Catholics for Choice, Workplace Fairness, National Employment Law Project (NELP), National Education Association, YWCA USA, Union for Reform Judaism, Economic Policy Institute, Ujima Inc.: The National Center on Violence Against Women in the Black Community (Ujima), AnitaB.org, Center for Advancement of Public Policy, Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Coalition of Labor Union Women, AFL-CIO (CLUW), Women of Reform Judaism, Feminist Women's Health Center, Futures Without Violence, Jewish Women International, Justice for Migrant Women, National Resource Center on Domestic Violence, Casa de Esperanza: National Latin@ Network, Shriver Center on Poverty Law, National Network to End Domestic Violence, Black Women's Blueprint, Lovelace Consulting Services, Inc., National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum (NAPAWF), National Organization of Black Elected Legislative Women (NOBEL Women), Supermajority, AFL-CIO, Resilience, Eta Phi Beta Sorority, Incorporated (Affiliate of the National Council of Negro Women); Swing Phi Swing Social Fellowship, Inc. (Affiliate of the National Council of Negro Women); Legal Momentum, the Women's Legal Defense and Education Fund; Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP), Oxfam America, National Birth Equity Collaborative, The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, Global Justice Center, National Coalition of 100 Black Women Inc. (NCBW), and Wage Equity Now.

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