In order to ensure that all North Country residents earn equal pay for equal work, Assemblywoman Addie J. Russell (D-Theresa), Chair of the Task Force on Women’s Issues, announced that she supported several pieces of legislation that would end wage discrimination in New York State
“In this day and age, any form of wage discrimination in the workplace is disgraceful,” Assemblywoman Russell said. “This legislative package continues my long-standing commitment to eliminating pay inequity.”
Specifically, the Assembly legislation would make it easier to enforce equal pay laws and create state policy to determine and define “comparable work.” Additionally, the legislation would:
-enact the New York State Fair Pay Act to address and enforce pay equity, including broadening equal pay protections to include equivalent jobs, making it unlawful for an employer to discriminate between employees on the basis of gender, race or national origin, and ensuring that traditional female and minority jobs are not undervalued (A.5958);
-establish state policy that local political subdivisions ensure equal pay for work of comparable value regardless of sex, race or national origin (A.1729);
-implement a state policy that compensates employees in state service equally for work of comparable value by eliminating wage inequality for workers due to sex, race or national origin (A.753); and
-design and publish a report evaluating wage disparities of public employees related to job titles, segregated by the gender, race and/or national origin of employees (A.881).
“During a time when many families are struggling to support their household, we must make sure that everyone is properly compensated for the work they perform,” Assemblywoman Russell said. “North Country families work hard for their paychecks, and turning a blind eye to this problem would be a disservice to them. No one should earn less because of their gender.”
Women in New York make 84 cents for every dollar men earn, creating a substantial yearly pay gap of roughly $8,275 between men and women working full time in New York State
As a group, these full-time working women are paid nearly $23 billion less every year because of the wage gap. If a woman in New York was paid equal pay for equal work, she could afford 63 more weeks of groceries; four more months of mortgage and utilities payments; eight more months of rent; or 2,116 additional gallons of gas each year.(3)
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Footnotes
1. www.nationalpartnership.org/site/DocServer/Wage_Gap_ny.pdf
1. www.nationalpartnership.org/site/DocServer/Wage_Gap_ny.pdf
2. Ibid.
3. Ibid.