In Obama’s 2014 State of the Union Address, he not only mesmerized Americans and caused millions of eyes to well up with tears; he received a standing ovation from many female congress members when he brought the Equal Pay Act into perspective.
In 1963, President John F. Kennedy signed into the law, the Equal Pay Act. According to CNN, “The law says that “no employer shall discriminate between employees on the basis of sex.” It passed the House that year by a 362-9 vote.” So, this leaves millions asking: why are women still receiving a lower salary than men in the United States?
According to National Public Radio, the executive bill is “seeking to advance the cause of equal pay for women.” Simultaneously, the bill is putting an end to the good old ‘don’t discuss your salaries with anyone’ in the work force. Overall, the new rules will make it harder for employers to hide discrimination in regards to salaries.
In addition, the bill will require data from all places of employment to be submitted to the Labor Department. Assuming that the data will be carefully examined, federal workers will be able to make sure gender and race is not affecting individuals of the same orientation and experience.
As some citizens see this act as a blessing, others are giving the executive bill a cold shoulder. Throughout the past fifty years, there has been little improvement in regards to the gap of men and women’s salaries.
In recent articles, The Huffington Post reported, “In 1963, when the Equal Pay Act was passed, full-time working women were paid 59 cents on average for every dollar paid to men.” Over the past 45 years the wage gap only closed by 18 cents.
With this in mind, should the general public be skeptical of the Equal Pay Act executive bill? The answer agreed upon by specialists is YES. Before we get too excited, it is important to know all of the facts.
Fox news recently put Obama on a pedestal and used the word hypocrite more than a few times. According to the American Enterprise institute, in the White House, women ONLY make 88 cents to every dollar paid to men.
With these recent findings, is the Equal Pay Act the real deal, or just a scheme for re-election?
For more information, check out: http://www.whitehouse.gov/21stcenturygov/tools/salaries