Senator Warnock introduces Senate resolution marking Black Women’s Equal Pay Day, which recognizes the significance of equal pay and the disparity in wages paid to men and to Black women
Georgia has the 2nd largest number of full-time Black women workers where women are paid 59 cents for every dollar paid to White, non-Hispanic men
Senator Reverend Warnock: “Black women and their invaluable contributions to Georgia and our country must be compensated. I am proud to be a vocal advocate for pay equity to ensure hard work is paid fairly, regardless of sex or gender”
Read full resolution text here
Washington, D.C. – Today U.S. Senator Reverend Warnock (D-GA) and Congresswoman Alma Adams (NC-12) introduced resolutions 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. As a vocal champion for fair wages and protecting the dignity of workers, Senator Warnock led the resolution in the U.S. Senate in efforts to help close the pay gap for Black women across the country, especially in Georgia where the state has the 2nd largest number in full-time Black women workers and women are being paid 59 cents for every dollar paid by men.
“Black women deserve equal pay for equal work. As breadwinners, providers, mentors, counselors, parents, grandmothers, teachers, doctors, nurses, and more, Black women and their invaluable contributions to Georgia and our country must be compensated. I am proud to be a vocal advocate for pay equity to ensure hard work is paid fairly, regardless of sex or gender,” said Senator Reverend Warnock.“I am honored to join Dr. Adams in introducing the Black Women’s Equal Pay Day Resolution and I will not stop working to protect the dignity of work for Black women in Georgia and nationwide as our country strives to match fair wages to hard work.”
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.
“Today is Black Women’s Equal Pay Day, which recognizes that many Black women have to work 19 months to make the same amount of money – for the same work – that an average white male makes in just 12 months’ time. Black women working full-time, year-round, are paid 63 cents for every dollar paid to White, non-Hispanic men, and that is one of many reasons why I am leading the Black Women’s Equal Pay Day Resolution in the House of Representatives,” said Congresswoman Adams. “Lower wages rob women of an equal life: the ability to pay for education, for health insurance, for food, and for housing. My family lived this struggle: my mother cleaned houses and saved up and pinched every penny so I could be the first person in my family to go to college. I can only imagine what she would have been able to accomplish had she been paid a fair wage.”
U.S. Senate cosponsors of the resolution include: Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Michael Bennet (D-CO), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Ben Cardin (D-MD), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Mazie Hirono (D-HI),Tim Kaine (D-VA), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Bob Menendez (D-NJ), Patty Murray (D-WA), Jon Ossoff (D-GA), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Tina Smith (D-MN), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) and Ron Wyden (D-OR).
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.
Read the full resolution text HERE.
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