PRINTER'S NO. 3577
No. 703 Session of 2008
INTRODUCED BY McILVAINE SMITH, BELFANTI, BENNINGTON, BEYER,
BISHOP, BRENNAN, CALTAGIRONE, COHEN, DALEY, DePASQUALE,
DiGIROLAMO, DONATUCCI, FLECK, FRANKEL, FREEMAN, GALLOWAY,
GEORGE, GIBBONS, GINGRICH, GOODMAN, GRUCELA, HARHAI,
HENNESSEY, HERSHEY, JAMES, JOSEPHS, KENNEY, KORTZ, KOTIK,
KULA, LEACH, LEVDANSKY, MAHONEY, MAJOR, MANDERINO, MANN,
MANTZ, McGEEHAN, MICOZZIE, MOYER, MUNDY, MURT, MUSTIO, MYERS,
M. O'BRIEN, PALLONE, PARKER, PRESTON, RAMALEY, READSHAW,
REICHLEY, RUBLEY, SAINATO, SANTONI, SEIP, SHIMKUS, SIPTROTH,
K. SMITH, SOLOBAY, STERN, STURLA, SWANGER, TRUE, VULAKOVICH,
WALKO, WATSON, WHEATLEY, WOJNAROSKI, YOUNGBLOOD, SURRA,
BROOKS, CARROLL, FABRIZIO, PASHINSKI, VITALI AND YUDICHAK,
APRIL 7, 2008
INTRODUCED AS NONCONTROVERSIAL RESOLUTION UNDER RULE 35,
APRIL 7, 2008
A RESOLUTION
1 Recognizing April 22, 2008, as "Equal Pay Day" in Pennsylvania.
2 WHEREAS, Although women's wages have risen in all states
3 since 1989, in no state does the typical full-time woman worker
4 earn as much as the typical man; and
5 WHEREAS, Women employed on a full-time, year-round basis
6 still earn only 77% of what men earn, with median earnings of
7 $31,800; and
8 WHEREAS, Nationally, participation by women in the labor
9 force still lags behind that of men at 59.2% for women versus
10 71.8% for men, and this Commonwealth is below the national
11 average at 58.1%; and
1 WHEREAS, At the present rate of progress, it will take 50
2 years for women to achieve earnings parity with men nationwide;
3 and
4 WHEREAS, Since 1995 the poverty rate among women in 15 states
5 has increased, and in another 15 states women's poverty fell by
6 less than one percentage point; and
7 WHEREAS, In the report, The Best and Worst State Economies
8 for Women, prepared by the Institute for Women's Policy
9 Research, this Commonwealth is ranked 34th among the 50 states
10 with respect to earnings for employed women, ratio of earnings
11 between women and men, percentage of women in the labor force
12 and percentage of women in managerial or professional
13 occupations; and
14 WHEREAS, These conditions continue despite the fact that the
15 Constitution of Pennsylvania prohibits denial or abridgment of
16 equality of rights because of gender and that section 6(d) of
17 the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 and Title VII of the Civil
18 Rights Act of 1964 prohibit pay discrimination for men and women
19 doing the same job; and
20 WHEREAS, It is essential that all Pennsylvanians be aware of
21 the need for and benefits of equal pay; and
22 WHEREAS, All the residents of this Commonwealth will benefit
23 from equal pay; therefore be it
24 RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives recognize April
25 22, 2008, as "Equal Pay Day" in Pennsylvania.
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