Paycheck Fairness Act

Floor Speech

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Ms. DEAN. Mr. Speaker, I thank Chairman Scott for leading and for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the Paycheck Fairness Act.

It has been more than five decades since the passage of the Equal Pay Act of 1963, yet a woman still earns only 82 cents on average for every dollar earned by her male counterpart. Women of color fare much worse. The Paycheck Fairness Act will ensure equal pay for equal work. It is just that simple and it is just that overdue. Gender and racial pay gaps persist, and earnings lost to these gaps are felt even more during the COVID-19 pandemic. This falls most heavily on women.

The Paycheck Fairness Act will update and strengthen the Equal Pay Act to help close this gap. Pay inequities not only affect women, it affects children and their families. Though we have made strides in the past, we know the issue of equal pay persists.

We must not pass this inequity on. I want my granddaughters, Aubrey and Ella, as well as my grandson, Sawyer, to live in a country where equal pay for equal work is the norm.

I thank chairwoman and champion Rosa DeLauro.

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