Equal Pay
The Equal Pay Act of 1963 and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act are two pivotal laws that
protect workers against discrimination. The Equal Pay Act prohibits unequal pay for men
and women who perform the same job. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act prohibits wage
discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion or national origin.
Despite these laws, stronger legislation and executive action is needed to address wage
discrimination. In 2012 (the year for which the most recent data is available), women
earned only 76.5 cents for every dollar men earned. Today, women are still earning less
than their male counterparts, wage discrimination laws are poorly enforced, and wage
discrimination cases are extremely difficult to prove and win.
In 2007, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) agreed, in the case of
Ledbetter vs. Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co., to limit the ability of employees to wage
discrimination claims against employers under Title VII. Under this ruling, employers
were immunized from accountability for their discrimination once 180 days passed.
Luckily, in 2009 the House and Senate passed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act to reverse
the Ledbetter v. Goodyear Supreme Court decision and restore the law to how it was
previously applied; this was the first bill signed into law by President Obama.
YWCA USA position:
The YWCA supports initiatives to increase the income of women, including policies that
raise the minimum wage, protect overtime, strengthen equal pay, maintain the earned
income tax credit, oppose the privatization of Social Security, and expand nontraditional training for women from all socioeconomic and racial backgrounds.
The YWCA USA supports measures that have been pending in Congress for several years
that will address longstanding discriminatory practices that contribute to the genderbased wage gap, such as the Paycheck Fairness Act (S. 84/H.R. 377) and Fair Pay Act (S.
168/H.R. 438), which would expand upon the original scope of the Equal Pay Act and
amend the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), respectively. Furthermore, we urge
President Obama to issue an executive order to prohibit federal contractors from
punishing or firing workers who talk about their salary with co-workers. Finally, the
EEOC should direct employers to collect wage data including race, sex, and national
origin of employees.
Additional Information:
2025 M Street, NW
Suite 550
Washington, D.C. 20036
202-467-0801
www.ywca.org





Women are almost half of the workforce. They are the equal, if not the main,
breadwinner in four out of ten families. They receive more college and graduate degrees
than men. Yet, on average, women continue to earn considerably less than men. In
2012, female full-time workers made only 76.5 cents for every dollar earned by men, a
gender wage gap of 23 percent. That is $23 less to spend on groceries, utility bills,
rent/mortgage, child care and other basic expenses for every $100 worth of work done.
The wage gap for women of color is even worse. In 2012, the median earnings of African
American women were $33,885, 68.6 percent of all men's earnings (a slight decrease
from 69.5 percent in 2011), and the earnings of Latina women were $28,424, 57.5
percent of all men's earnings (a decrease from 60.2 percent in 2011). Asian American
women's earnings of $45,586 were 92 percent of all men's earnings (an increase from
84.8 percent in 2011). The National Committee on Pay Equity's The Wage Gap Over
Time shows how little the wage gap has changed in this century.
In their first year out of college, millennial women are paid 82 cents for every dollar paid
to their male peers even with similar college, major and occupation. The pay gap shrinks
when certain factors are considered, such as hours and employment sector, but the pay
gap does not disappear. About one-third of the gap could not be explained by any of the
factors commonly understood to affect earnings, indicating that gender discrimination
could be contributing to pay inequity. With many of those college graduates saddled
with student loans, the pay gap is making student debt more burdensome for women.
The wage gap between men and women cuts across a wide spectrum of occupations.
Women earn less than men in occupations ranging from the medical field to computer
and mathematical occupations to jobs in the construction industry.
The gender wage gap jeopardizes women’s retirement security. The persistent gender
pay gap leaves women with less income than men from Social Security and pensions.
For example, Social Security benefits for older women are 71 percent of that the
amount for older men’s benefits ($11,057 for women versus $15,557 for men in 2009).
Incomes from public and private pensions based on women’s own work were just 60
percent and 48 percent of men’s pension incomes, respectively.
View Points:
Opponents of equal pay legislation argue that the pay differential between men and
women is not the result of discrimination against women, but a result of a number of other
factors:
1) Women and men tend to pursue different educational and career paths, resulting in
different earnings; and,
2) Women choose to stay home and care for children, as well as work less hours while
employed so they are able to care for their families.
Both of these decisions result in a loss of employment earnings and the career
advancement that could lead to higher pay.
2
Advocates for equal pay argue that achieving parity is one key to women’s economic
security for women and their families. They believe that, considering the increasing
percentage of women in the labor force since the 1970’s and the greater share of the total
household income earned by women, equal pay is directly linked to family well-being. Pay
inequity leaves women with less income with which to pay for health care, housing,
education, child care, and other basic necessities. Lower earnings also result in lower Social
Security benefits for women when they retire, leading to higher rates of poverty.
3