Progressive Women’s Caucus Marks Lilly Ledbetter Day, Awaits Equal Pay in Mich.
- Jan 29, 2016
- 2 min read
Republican leadership allows bills ensuring pay equity languish in committee
LANSING — While the nation marks the seventh anniversary of a key piece of legislation that helps women hold employers accountable for wage discrimination, the Progressive Women’s Caucus says working people in Michigan still wait for laws that will stipulate that wage discrimination is illegal and give workers the tools they need to fight back against unfair wages. The Lilly Ledbetter Act, signed by President Barack Obama on Jan. 29, 2009, states that the 180-day statute of limitations on filing an equal pay lawsuit resets with each new paycheck affected by wage discrimination.
“Michigan women still don’t have the legal protections they need to prevent wage discrimination and to seek justice from employers when it happens,” said Rep. Marcia Hovey-Wright (D-Muskegon), the chairwoman of the Progressive Women’s Legislative Caucus’ Equal Pay Subcommittee. “While the Lilly Ledbetter Act was an important step forward for women across the country, women in Michigan are still waiting for the laws they need to protect them. We’ve introduced the bills that would provide these protections, but legislative Republicans refuse to act on them.”
According to the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey, the median wage for a full-time working woman in Michigan is $37,419 — 25.3 percent less than the median full-time working man’s wage of $50,157. For minority women, the disparity in pay in even greater. This pay gap persists no matter how much education a woman has, or in which career she chooses to work. Even in fields traditionally filled by women — such as teaching and nursing — men tend to earn higher wages.
“Michigan families are already struggling just to get by, and many people are simply living from paycheck to paycheck,” Rep. Gretchen Driskell (D-Saline) said. “When women face a pay cut simply for being women, it makes it even harder to make ends meet. It’s not just women who are suffering, but their children and spouses, too. This is an issue that affects everyone, which is why we must act now to end wage discrimination.”
The bills in the Progressive Women’s Caucus’ equal pay package would:
Require employers to disclose, upon request, certain wage information for similarly situated employees.
Create a commission on equal pay within the Department of Civil Rights.
Amend the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act to include equal compensation for work of comparable value.
Establish equal pay certificates for state contractors.
Require employers to post and inform employees about equal pay laws.
Establish an employer incentive awards program for equal pay.
Require the state to compile an equal pay report with the goal of decreasing wage disparity between sexes.
Expand the prohibition of wage discrimination by amending the Workforce Opportunity Wage Act.
Allow remedies for wage discrimination under the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act.
“There’s widespread agreement that men and women who have the same training and do the same work should get the same pay, but Republicans in the Legislature refuse to take testimony or vote on these bills,” said Rep. Leslie Love (D-Detroit). “I urge my colleagues to do the right thing for their mothers, sisters, wives and daughters and take action to bring pay equity to Michigan.”
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