IV 
118TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. CON. RES. 118 
Recognizing the significance of equal pay and the disparity in wages paid 
to men and to Black women. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JULY 9, 2024 
Ms. ADAMS (for herself, Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN, Ms. LOIS FRANKEL of Flor-
ida, Ms. MANNING, Mr. CARSON, Ms. STEVENS, Mrs. FOUSHEE, Ms. 
WILLIAMS of Georgia, Mr. SMITH of Washington, Ms. BONAMICI, Ms. 
VELA´ZQUEZ, Mr. MOULTON, Ms. NORTON, Ms. OMAR, Mr. GOTTHEIMER, 
Ms. WILD, Ms. LEE of Pennsylvania, Mr. HOYER, Mr. GARAMENDI, Mrs. 
CHERFILUS-MCCORMICK, and Mr. ESPAILLAT) submitted the following 
concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Education 
and the Workforce 
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 
Recognizing the significance of equal pay and the disparity 
in wages paid to men and to Black women. 
Whereas July 9, 2024, is Black Women’s Equal Pay Day, 
which marks the day that symbolizes how long into 2024 
Black women must work to make what White, non-His-
panic men were paid in 2023; 
Whereas section 6(d) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 
1938 (29 U.S.C. 206(d)) prohibits discrimination in com-
pensation for equal work on the basis of sex; 
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•HCON 118 IH 
Whereas title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 
2000e et seq.) prohibits discrimination in compensation 
because of race, color, religion, national origin, or sex; 
Whereas, despite the passage of the Equal Pay Act of 1963 
(29 U.S.C. 206 note) 6 decades ago, which requires that 
men and women in the same workplace be given equal 
pay for equal work, Census Bureau data show that Black 
women working full time, year-round, are paid 69 cents 
for every dollar paid to White, non-Hispanic men; 
Whereas when part-time and part-year workers are included 
in the comparison, Black women are paid 66 cents for 
every dollar paid to White, non-Hispanic men; 
Whereas if the current trends continue, on average, Black 
women will have to wait over 100 years to achieve equal 
pay; 
Whereas the median annual pay for a Black woman in the 
United States working full time, year-round, is $49,480, 
which means that, if the current wage gap were to con-
tinue, the average Black woman would lose nearly 
$884,800 in potential earnings to the wage gap over the 
course of a 40-year career; 
Whereas lost wages mean Black women have less money to 
support themselves and their families, save and invest for 
the future, and spend on goods and services, causing 
businesses and the economy to suffer as a result; 
Whereas Black women’s median earnings are less than men’s 
at every level of academic achievement; 
Whereas Black women with bachelor’s and master’s degrees 
experience a higher wage gap in comparison to White, 
non-Hispanic men than Black women with a high school 
diploma; 
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•HCON 118 IH 
Whereas, in the United States, more than 68 percent of 
Black mothers are the sole or primary breadwinners for 
their families, compared to just more than one-third per-
cent of non-Hispanic White mothers; 
Whereas the lack of access to affordable, quality childcare, 
paid family and medical leave, paid sick leave, and other 
family friendly workplace policies contributes to the wage 
gap by forcing many Black women to choose between 
their paycheck or job and getting quality care for them-
selves or their family members; 
Whereas if the wage gap were eliminated, on average, a 
Black woman working full time would have enough 
money for over 2 additional years of tuition and fees for 
a 4-year public university, the full cost of tuition and fees 
for a public 2-year community college, more than 41 ad-
ditional months of premiums for employer-based family 
health insurance coverage with employer contributions, 
over 50 weeks of food for a family of 4, more than 12 
additional months of home ownership costs, including 
mortgage payments, real estate taxes, insurance, utilities, 
and fuel costs, 17 more months of rental costs, including 
rent payments, utilities, and fuel, or enough money to 
pay off an average borrower’s Federal student loan debt 
in under 2 years; 
Whereas 38 percent of women have been sexually harassed at 
the workplace and over 78 percent of sexual harassment 
charges filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity 
Commission are filed by women, yet research has found 
that only a small number of women who experience har-
assment formally report incidents for reasons including 
fear of retaliation; 
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•HCON 118 IH 
Whereas workplace harassment forces many women to leave 
their occupation or industry; 
Whereas targets of harassment were 6.5 times as likely as 
nontargets to change jobs or pass up opportunities for 
advancement, contributing to the gender wage gap; 
Whereas Black women were the most likely of all racial and 
ethnic groups to have filed a sexual harassment charge; 
Whereas nearly two-thirds of workers paid the minimum 
wage or less are women, and there is an overrepresenta-
tion of women of color in low-wage and tipped occupa-
tions; 
Whereas 60 percent of private sector workers reported that 
they were either discouraged or prohibited by their em-
ployers from discussing wage and salary information, 
which can hide pay discrimination and prevent remedies; 
Whereas the pay disparity Black women face is part of a 
wider set of disparities Black women face in home owner-
ship, unemployment, poverty, access to childcare, and the 
ability to accumulate wealth; 
Whereas the gender wage gap for Black women has only nar-
rowed by 5 cents in the last 2 decades; 
Whereas true pay equity requires a multifaceted strategy that 
addresses the gendered and racial injustices that Black 
women face daily; 
Whereas the pandemic has disproportionately economically 
impacted Black women; and 
Whereas many national organizations have designated July 9, 
2024, as Black Women’s Equal Pay Day to represent the 
additional time that women must work to compensate for 
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•HCON 118 IH 
the lower wages paid to Black women last year: Now, 
therefore, be it 
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
concurring), That Congress— 
(1) recognizes the disparity in wages paid to 
Black women and its impact on women, families, 
and the United States; and 
(2) reaffirms its support for ensuring equal pay 
for equal work and narrowing the gender wage gap. 
Æ 
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