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
P2 1WHEREAS, According to the United States Census Bureau,
2full-time women working year round in 2011 earned on average
377 percent of the earnings of their male counterparts, with African
4American women earning only 68 percent and Latino women
5earning only 59 percent of wages paid to men, indicating little
6change or progress in pay equity; and
7WHEREAS, While several measures of educational achievement
8show that on average women are faring as well as their male
9counterparts today, often these gains do not translate into
10comparable economic success beyond college; and
11WHEREAS, A study in 2012 by the American Association of
12University Women found that one year after college graduation,
13women were paid on average only 82 percent of what their male
14counterparts made; and
15WHEREAS, In 2009 the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act was signed
16into law, which gives back to employees their day in court to
17challenge a pay gap, but Congress has yet to pass the Paycheck
18Fairness Act, which would amend the Equal Pay Act by closing
19loopholes and improving the law’s effectiveness; and
20WHEREAS, According to one estimate, college-educated
21women working full time earn more than one-half million dollars
22less than their male peers do over the course of a lifetime; and
23WHEREAS, Recent budget cuts to California’s community
24colleges have made it harder for women to obtain a degree or enroll
25in courses resulting in a dramatic decrease of women’s enrollment
26in community colleges since 2007; and
27WHEREAS, Nearly 4 in 10 mothers are primary breadwinners
28in their households, and nearly two-thirds are significant earners,
29making pay equity critical to families’ economic security; and
30WHEREAS, A lifetime of lower pay means women have less
31income to save for retirement and less income counted in a Social
32Security or pension benefit formula; and
33WHEREAS, The American Association of University Women
34in a 2011 report found that according to the United States Census
35Bureau, women marketing and sales managers earned $59,491 in
362009, compared with $89,933 for their male peers; women
37physicians and surgeons earned $120,971, compared with $190,726
38for their male peers; and women securities, commodities, and
39financial services sales agents earned $52,524, compared to
40$85,760 for their male peers; and
P3 1WHEREAS, Fair pay equity policies can be implemented simply
2and without undue costs or hardship in both the public and private
3sectors; and
4WHEREAS, Tuesday, April 9, 2013, symbolizes the time when
5the wages paid to American women catch up to the wages paid to
6men from the previous year; now, therefore, be it
7Resolved by the Senate of the State of California, the Assembly
8thereof concurring, That the Legislature declares April 9, 2013,
9as Equal Pay Day; and be it further
10Resolved, That the citizens of California are urged to recognize
11the full value of women’s skills and significant contributions to
12the labor force, and that businesses are encouraged to conduct an
13internal pay evaluation to ensure women are being paid fairly; and
14be it further
15Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies of
16this resolution to the author for appropriate distribution.
O
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