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Schakowsky Statement on the Tenth Anniversary of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act

January 29, 2019

Today, Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky, a Senior Chief Deputy Whip and Vice Chair of the Democracy Reform Task Force, released the following statement on the tenth anniversary of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act:

“It has been 10 years since President Obama signed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, a critical law that has helped lessen the gender pay gap. For too long, women have worked hard, often harder, than men only to be paid 80 cents on the man’s dollar and even less for women of color.

“While the pay gap has narrowed over the past decade, there is much more work to be done to ensure fair pay for all. According to the Institute for Women’s Policy Research, if change continues at the same slow pace as it has done for the past fifty years, it will take 41 years—or until 2059—for women to finally reach pay parity and for women of color, the rate of change is even slower. Hispanic women will have to wait until 2224 and Black women will wait until 2119 for equal pay.

“On this tenth anniversary of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, we want to honor women, like Lilly, who continue to stand up against discrimination and call for the long-last passing of the Equal Rights Amendment.

“Without constitutional protections, women will continue to suffer the lifelong consequences of gender discrimination in many aspects of our lives. It is long overdue that we establish gender equality under the law.”

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