DeLauro Leads Members of Congress in Fighting the Wage Gap

WASHINGTON, DC (April 1, 2016) — This week, Congresswomen Rosa DeLauro (CT-03) led a group of 78 Members of Congress in offering strong support for the U.S. Equal Employment Office's proposal to update the Employer Information Report (EEO-1) to include and gather data about compensation from employers. Data exposes trends in hiring, paying, and promoting employees, which can help identify and end patterns of pay disparity.

"Women make up half the workforce, and are two-thirds of primary or co-breadwinners in America. Yet, after more than five decades after the passage of the Equal Pay Act of 1963, a woman still makes only 79 cents, on average, for every dollar earned by a man," the letter states. "That gap is even wider for women of color. Compared to white men, African American women are paid 60 cents, Native American women are paid 59 cents, and Hispanic Women are paid 55 cents."

"Paying people fairly for the work they do shouldn't be dependent on their gender, race or ethnicity. We strongly believe that the proposed revisions to the EEO-1 are a fair and reasonable way to gather that data. By acting for women now, and ensuring they get paid the same as men for the same work, we can give them, their families and our entire economy the tools to recover and thrive," the letter concludes.

The revised EEO-1 form will shine a light on pay practices, reveal trends, and support employers in proactively improving systems and closing gaps. The proposed revision will increase transparency in compensation, support employer efforts to self-monitor compensation policies, and strengthen EEOC and DOL's existing technical assistance programs and enforcement efforts, furthering their charge to eliminate workplace discrimination.

The full letter is available here.

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