Recognizing the significance of equal pay and the disparity in wages paid to Latina women in comparison to men.

Bill: 117-hconres-122
Sponsor: full_name: Rep. Leger Fernandez, Teresa [D-NM-3]
Introduced: 2022-12-08
Policy area: Labor and Employment
Latest action: action_date: 2022-12-08
text: Referred to the House Committee on Education and Labor.

Summaries:
action_date: 2022-12-08
action_desc: Introduced in House
text: <p>This concurrent resolution recognizes the disparity between wages paid to Latina women, and its impact on women, families, and the nation and reaffirms Congress' commitment to supporting equal pay and to narrowing the gender wage gap.</p> <p><BR> <BR> </p>

tv_txt: IV 117th CONGRESS 2d Session H. CON. RES. 122 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES December 8, 2022 Ms. Leger Fernandez (for herself, Ms. Barragán , Mr. Huffman , Ms. Bonamici , Mr. García of Illinois , Ms. Newman , Ms. DeLauro , Mr. Espaillat , Mr. Cárdenas , Mr. Carson , Ms. Castor of Florida , Ms. Norton , Mr. Castro of Texas , Mr. Soto , Mr. Ruiz , Ms. Ross , Ms. Lois Frankel of Florida , Ms. Jayapal , Ms. Garcia of Texas , Mrs. Napolitano , Mr. Doggett , Ms. Porter , Ms. Wilson of Florida , Ms. Brownley , Ms. Adams , Mr. Cleaver , Ms. Velázquez , Ms. Lee of California , Ms. Escobar , Ms. DelBene , Mr. Takano , Ms. Schakowsky , Ms. Stansbury , Ms. Roybal-Allard , Mrs. Torres of California , Ms. Meng , Ms. Titus , Mr. Thompson of California , Mr. Raskin , Mr. Gallego , Mr. Gomez , Mr. San Nicolas , Mr. Levin of California , Mr. Correa , and Mr. Grijalva ) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor CONCURRENT RESOLUTION Recognizing the significance of equal pay and the disparity in wages paid to Latina women in comparison to men.

Whereas December 8, 2022, is Latina Equal Pay Day to observe that Latina women must work nearly an additional 11 months to earn, on average, what White, non-Hispanic men were paid in 2021; Whereas Latina women make up the second-largest group of women workers in the United States, after White women; Whereas there are 12,800,000 Hispanic women in the labor force, representing slightly more than 17 percent of all women in the labor force today; Whereas the labor force participation rate of Latina women in 2021 was higher than that of their White counterparts, which reflects that a growing share of Latina women are either working or actively looking for work; Whereas section 6(d) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 ( 29 U.S.C. 206(d)(1) ) prohibits discrimination in wages on the basis of sex for equal work; 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) more than five decades ago, which establishes that employers shall not discriminate in wages on the basis of sex but shall provide equal pay for equal work, Census Bureau data show that Latina women working full-time and year-round are paid 57 cents for every dollar paid to White, non-Hispanic men, while the average wage differential for all Latina women with reported earnings working full-time, part-time and part-year is 54 cents for every dollar paid to White, non-Hispanic men; Whereas a study conducted in 2019 found that on average, Latina women lose over $1,100,000 in potential earnings over their lifetime to the wage gap; Whereas the American Community Survey 2016–2020 reported that median annual pay for Latina women in the United States working full-time, year-round was $33,000; Whereas the American Community Survey 2016–2020 reported that median annual pay for all Latina women with reported earnings working full-time, part-time and part-year was $25,312, placing a working mother with two children near poverty; Whereas job loss during the COVID–19 pandemic distorted measurements of average wages as women with lower earnings in sectors such as leisure, hospitality, and retail were more likely to experience job loss and leave the labor force; Whereas lost wages mean Latina women have less money to support themselves and their families, save and invest for the future, and spend on goods and services; Whereas 51 percent of Latina women are unable to earn sick days through their jobs; Whereas more than half of Latina women who are low-wage earners report that they spent most or all of their savings during the COVID–19 pandemic and 32 percent have no money left for emergencies, compared to 13 percent of White men; Whereas the lack of affordable, accessible child care during the COVID–19 pandemic led to 14 percent of Latina women, and 32 percent of immigrant Latina women, to quit their jobs or reduce their number of work hours to care for their children; Whereas the underpayment of Latina women workers causes businesses and the economy to suffer; Whereas the lack of access to affordable, quality child care, paid family and medical leave, and other family friendly workplace policies forces many Latina women to choose between their paycheck or job and getting quality care for themselves or their family members, a dynamic that contributes to the wage gap and has been further exacerbated by the COVID–19 pandemic, especially as Latina women disproportionately work in essential jobs that put them at greater risk of exposure to COVID–19; Whereas if the wage gap were eliminated, on average, a Latina woman working full-time and year-round would have enough money to pay for approximately three years of child care, to pay off her student debt in one year, or to pay off 19 months of the average mortgage payment; Whereas 25 to 85 percent of women have been sexually harassed at the workplace, and research has found that only a small number of those who experience harassment, or about 1 in 10, formally report incidents for reasons including lack of access to the complaint process and fear of retaliation; Whereas workplace harassment forces many women to leave their occupation or industry—targets of harassment were 6.5 times as likely as nontargets to change jobs—or pass up opportunities for advancement, and this contributes to the gender wage gap; Whereas there is a high personal cost for women who have been sexually harassed, including unemployment, underemployment, and financial stress resulting from changing jobs, which lead to long-term consequences for earnings and career attainment; Whereas two-thirds of workers paid the minimum wage or less in 2020 are women, and there is a disproportionate concentration of women of color in low-wage and tipped jobs; Whereas the pay disparity Latina women face is part of a wider set of disparities Latina women face in homeownership, unemployment, poverty, access to child care, and the ability to build wealth; Whereas true pay equity requires a multifaceted strategy that addresses the gender and racial injustices that Latina women face daily; and Whereas many national organizations have designated December 8, 2022, as Latina Equal Pay Day to represent the additional time that Latina women must work into the next calendar year to receive the earnings of White, non-Hispanic men in the prior Census year: Now, therefore, be it

That Congress— (1) recognizes the disparity in wages paid to Latina women and its impact on women, families, the economy, and our entire country; and (2) reaffirms its support for ensuring equal pay and closing the gender wage gap.