SCR 30, as amended, Jackson. Equal Pay Day.
This measure would declare April 9, 2013, as Equal Pay Day.
Fiscal committee: no.
P1 1WHEREAS, Fifty years after the passage of the Equal Pay Act,
2women, especially women of color, continue to suffer the
3consequences of unequal pay; and
4WHEREAS, According to the United States Census Bureau,
5full-time women working year round in 2011 earned on average
677 percent of the earnings of their male counterparts, with African
7American women earning only 68 percent and Latino women
8earning only 59 percent of wages paid to men, indicating little
9change or progress in pay equity; and
10WHEREAS, While several measures of educational achievement
11show that on average women are faring as well as their male
12counterparts today, often these gains do not translate into
13comparable economic success beyond college; and
P2 1WHEREAS, A study in 2012 by the American Association of
2University Women found that one year after college graduation,
3women were paid on average only 82 percent of what their male
4counterparts made; and
5WHEREAS, In 2009 the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act was signed
6into law, which gives back to employees their day in court to
7challenge a pay gap, but Congress has yet to pass the Paycheck
8Fairness Act, which would amend the Equal Pay Act by closing
9loopholes and improving the law’s effectiveness; and
10WHEREAS, According to one estimate, college-educated
11women working full time earn more thanbegin delete a halfend deletebegin insert one-halfend insert million
12dollars less than their male peers do over the course of a lifetime;
13and
14WHEREAS, Recent budget cuts to California’s community
15colleges have made it harder for women to obtain a degree or enroll
16in courses resulting in a dramatic decrease of women’s enrollment
17in community colleges since 2007; and
18WHEREAS, Nearlybegin delete fourend deletebegin insert 4end insert in 10 mothers are primary
19breadwinners in their households, and nearly two-thirds are
20significant earners, making pay equity critical to families’
21economic security; and
22WHEREAS, A lifetime of lower pay means women have less
23income to save for retirement and less income counted in a Social
24Security or pension benefit formula; and
25WHEREAS, The American Association of University Women
26in a 2011 report found that according to the United States Census
27Bureau, women marketing and sales managers earned $59,491 in
282009, compared with $89,933 for their male peers; women
29physicians and surgeons earned $120,971, compared with $190,726
30for their male peers; and women securities, commodities, and
31financial services sales agents earned $52,524, compared to
32$85,760 for their male peers; and
33WHEREAS, Fair pay equity policies can be implemented simply
34and without undue costs or hardship in both the public and private
35sectors; and
36WHEREAS, Tuesday, April 9, 2013, symbolizes the time when
37the wages paid to American women catch up to the wages paid to
38men from the previous year; now, therefore, be it
P3 1Resolved by the Senate of the State of California, the Assembly
2thereof concurring, That the Legislature declares April 9, 2013,
3as Equal Pay Day; and be it further
4Resolved, That the citizens of California are urged to recognize
5the full value of women’s skills and significant contributions to
6the labor force, and that businesses are encouraged to conduct an
7internal pay evaluation to ensure women are being paid fairly; and
8be it further
9Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies of
10this resolution to the author for appropriate distribution.
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