DeLauro Continues to Fight for Equal Pay for Equal Work

Washington, DC- Congresswoman Rosa L. DeLauro (CT-3) released the following statement in response to last night's decision by the United States Ninth Circuit court that a case filed against Wal-Mart for sex-discrimination may proceed as a class-action case.

Originally filed in 2001, the case claims that Wal-Mart discriminated against female workers, paying them less and giving them fewer promotions. The decision means that up to a million women could be included as plaintiffs, making this one of the largest sex discrimination class-action lawsuits in history.

"I have been working on the issue of equal pay for women since I was elected to Congress, and it is long past time for companies like Wal-Mart to play by the same rules as everyone else. We are talking about the world's largest private employer having to face charges that it paid more than one million women less than men for doing the same jobs. This is about pay equity for women, this is about fairness in the workplace, and I am very pleased with the court's decision to move forward with this case.

"I urge my colleagues to take this landmark case, a million women strong, into account and keep moving forward in ending workplace discrimination in this country by passing the Paycheck Fairness Act, which I first introduced in 1997. This bill, which would ensure equal pay for equal work, has passed the House of Representatives twice, and now awaits action in the Senate."