Last month, Congress voted down the Paycheck Fairness Act for the third time in two years, legislation that would obligate equal pay for all Americans. The act would be an update to the Equal Pay Act of 1963 and would significantly decrease the pay gap between men and women, which has not improved since 2007. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, full-time working women earned an average of 77 cents to every dollar men earned. The statistics are even lower for African American women and Latinas. According to the Institute for Women’s Policy Research, 51 percent of women and 47 percent of men are discouraged from talking about their wages.
Besides securing equal pay among employees, the Paycheck Fairness Act would also prohibit retaliation against workers who inquire about their employers’ wage practices or disclose their own wages and authorize additional training to better identify and handle wage disputes, according to the American Civil Liberties Union.
Sounds good, right? So why has the act continually failed to pass, and why did every Republican (women included) vote against it?
Republicans’ decision could be completely political. In an interview with the Daily Trojan, Senator Deb Fischer, a Republican who voted against the act, said, “It’s a one-sided vote for political reasons, so [Democrats] can use it in campaigns.” With the midterm elections coming close, Democrats and Republicans are very conscious of the messages they need to relay to the public.
In another interview with the Daily Trojan, another female Republican senator who voted against the act, Senator Kelly Ayotte, argued that the bill might prohibit merit-based pay, payment that rewards employees on their individual performances.
Senator Susan Collins told the Huffington Post, “I think existing laws are adequate,” and she feared that the bill could labor small businesses with excess burdens.
On the other hand, Democrats counter these arguments by asking what is more important: one political issue in the midterm elections or equal pay for all Americans? And what about the employers whose merit-based rewards tend more toward men than women ― which would be considered gender discrimination?
The single best answer to take away from all the politics is this: equal pay is a discussion that should not be left to only politicians. Men and women together should promote and continue the conversation of equal pay, regardless of which side you agree with. You need two wings to fly, right?