Tell Congress: Pass the Paycheck Fairness Act and support paid sick days
and paid family & medical leave!
[ [link removed] ]Take Action Now
[ [link removed] ]TAKE ACTION

Dear Friend, 

It’s been so hot lately, but today we’re heated for an entirely different
reason.

Today is Moms’ Equal Pay Day, marking the fact that moms – across race and
ethnicity – must work until August 15th of 2023 to earn what dads made in
2022 alone. Of course, averages alone don’t tell the whole story because,
due to structural racism, moms of color face much larger wage gaps when
compared separately. It’s beyond frustrating that this year we celebrated
the 60th anniversary of the Equal Pay Act becoming law, yet we STILL don’t
have pay equity.

[ [link removed] ]But there is hope: We know how to close the wage gap and you can help!
In fact, with the passage and implementation of the Pregnant Workers
Fairness Act earlier this summer – which helps close the wage gap for
pregnant and postpartum workers by protecting them from discrimination and
keeping them in the workforce longer by providing reasonable workplace
accommodations – we’re already off to a great start. [ [link removed] ]And there’s more
we can do to close the gap. We need Congress to swiftly pass:

* Paycheck Fairness Act, which would modernize and strengthen the Equal
Pay Act of 1963 to better combat pay discrimination and close the wage
gap, including by protecting workers from retaliation for discussing
pay, banning the use of prior salary history, and codifying pay data
collection;
* Healthy Families Act, which would set a national standard for paid
sick and safe days to allow workers in businesses with 15 or more
employees to earn up to seven job-protected paid sick and safe days
each year, and;
* FAMILY Act, which would provide workers with up to 12 weeks of partial
income when they take time off from work for their own serious health
condition; the serious health condition of a family member; the birth,
foster placement, or adoption of a child; to address the effects of
domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking; and for certain
reasons related to military deployment.

[ [link removed] ]*Tell Congress: Pass the Paycheck Fairness Act, support paid sick days,
and pass paid family and medical leave!

We know these policies work! In fact, the United States just tested out
national paid sick days and paid family and medical leave in 2020 in
response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The program was highly effective at
protecting public health, workers benefited from wage replacement and the
ability to keep their jobs, and workers who took leave also reported
greater peace of mind [1]. The programs also helped businesses and the
economy by helping workers stay in their jobs so supply chains and
business practices weren’t disrupted; and also by lowering recruitment and
retraining costs for businesses. Now that the sun has set on this
emergency program, we see how permanent programs could help us prepare for
future public health emergencies and protect workers and their families.

Moms' Equal Pay Day is an important reminder that over three-quarters of
moms are breadwinners or co-breadwinners; [2] and that equal pay for moms
is pivotal for lifting families out of poverty and boosting our national
economy.

This is a big deal. Overall, moms across all races and ethnicities are
currently paid just 74 cents for every dollar paid to dads. But that
doesn’t tell the full story, because for many moms that wage gap is way
worse than 74 cents to the dollar. Latina moms make just 51 cents, Native
moms make just 49 cents, Black moms make just 53 cents, White moms make
just 73 cents, and AAPI moms make just 93 cents compared to white,
non-Hispanic dads. (Although if you further disaggregate the data for AAPI
moms, many AAPI communities make far less). [3]

The gender wage gap persists across most fields, regardless of education
or occupation, even in occupations that men and women are represented in
or when women are overrepresented, they likely experience a pay gap. [ [link removed] ]

[4]Breadwinners shouldn’t be left with just crumbs! Urge Congress to PASS
the Paycheck Fairness Act and advance paid leave!

The fact is that motherhood is a greater predictor of wage inequality than
gender. In other words, the gender pay gap is largely due to motherhood –
even if a woman ISN’T a mom, studies show the fact that she could
potentially become a mom contributes to unequal pay. [ [link removed] ]

This is not right. Moms and their families need better workplace
protections like the Paycheck Fairness Act, earned sick days, and paid
family and medical leave – and businesses and our economy need this too.
After all, women and moms make the majority of consumer purchasing
decisions in a country with a GDP that’s fueled by consumer purchasing. So
when moms don’t have funds to spend, we all lose out. Because of this,
studies show that if women and moms did have equal pay, then our entire
GDP for our nation would be lifted by 3% to 5% and half of children would
be lifted out of poverty! [ [link removed] ] Equal pay is a win-win.

[5]TAKE ACTION: On this Moms’ Equal Pay Day, demand Congress close the
moms’ wage gap by passing the Paycheck Fairness Act, and supporting earned
sick days, and paid family and medical leave.

– Taylor, Namatie, Ruth, Kristin, and the whole MomsRising.org &
MamásConPoder Team

***Please also take a moment to forward this email to friends and family!
Post the action link on Facebook and Twitter to spread the word. The more
of us who take action, the better chance we have of making this the last
#MomsEqualPayDay!

 

References:

[1] [6]National Partnership for Women and Families: Learning Our Lesson:
COVID-19 Emergency Paid Sick and Family Leave Showed the Value of a
Robust, Permanent Paid Leave Policy
[2] [ [link removed] ]National Partnership for Women and Families: America’s Women and
the Wage Gap
[3] [ [link removed] ]National Women’s Law Center: The Wage Gap Robs Mothers of What
They’re Owed
[4] [ [link removed] ]Center for American Progress: What Barbie Can Teach Us About the
Gender Wage Gap
[5] [ [link removed] ]The New York Times: The Gender Pay Gap Is Largely Because of
Motherhood
[6] [ [link removed] ]Institute for Women’s Policy Research: The Economic Impact of
Equal Pay by State


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