Employment

4th Anniversary of the Ledbetter Act

Thank President Obama for his leadership on fair pay and ask him to take the next step with a fair pay executive order.

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Pregnant Workers Fairness Act

Pregnant Workers Fairness Act

NWLC’s fact sheet outlines the provisions of the bill and discusses the impact its passage would have for families.

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Women's Lower Wages Worsen their Circumstances

In these tough economic times, the gap in wages only compounds the hardship faced by women and their families.

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concerned woman

Frequently Asked Questions About Sexual Harassment in the Workplace

Learn more about what sexual harassment in the workplace is and how you can stop it.

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Women in the Military

In recent years the number of women serving in the armed services has grown significantly, as have the obligations women have undertaken in our nation's defense.

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Fair Pay
Pregnant Workers
Women's Wages and the Economy
Sexual Harassment
Women in the Military

Highlights

Fact Sheet | How the Paycheck Fairness Act Will Strengthen the Equal Pay Act

May 7, 2012

The Equal Pay Act (EPA) of 1963 made it illegal for employers to pay unequal wages to men and women who perform substantially equal work.  Yet today, women earn only 77 cents for every dollar earned by men.  The Paycheck Fairness Act would update and strengthen the EPA by improving rememdies for pay discrimination, prohibiting employer retaliation, and facilitating class action suits in equal pay claims, among other strategies.

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| National Women's Law Center Encourages HELP Committee to Support Perez Nomination

April 18, 2013

The National Women's Law Center has urged the Senate HELP Committee to support the nomination of Thomas Perez for Secretary of the Department of Labor.

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Fact Sheet | The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act: Making Room for Pregnancy on the Job

May 7, 2012

The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA), introduced in both the House and the Senate, would let pregnant women continue to do their jobs and support their families by requiring employers to make the same sorts of accommodations for pregnancy, childbirth, and related medical conditions that they do for disabilities.  This fact sheet outlines the provisions of the bill and discusses the enormous impact its passage would have for working parents and their families.

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Fact Sheet | Closing the Wage Gap is Especially Important for Women of Color in Difficult Times

April 11, 2012

American women who work full-time, year-round are paid only 77 cents for every dollar paid to their male counterparts. But the wage gap is even larger for many women of color, with African-American women making only 62 cents, and Hispanic women only 54 cents, for every dollar earned by white, non-Hispanic men. These gaps translate into a loss of $19,575 for African-American women and $23,873 for Hispanic women every year. Closing the wage gap is, therefore, particularly important for African-American and Hispanic women, who are already more likely to have lower incomes and to be in poverty than any other group.  

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Fact Sheet | The Equal Employment Opportunity Restoration Act of 2012: What it Means for Low-Wage Women Workers

June 15, 2012

One year ago in Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. v. Dukes, a deeply divided Supreme Court in a narrow 5-4 decision limited workers’ ability to come together as a group to challenge discrimination by large employers. It dealt a particular blow to women in low-wage jobs, who make up a disproportionate share of the low-wage workforce. For this group of workers, the challenges of living on low wages are too often compounded by persistent workplace discrimination.  This fact sheet discusses the Equal Employmente Opportunity Restoration Act of 2012 and how it will affect low-wage women workers.

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Blog Post | “Similar in Their Ability or Inability to Work” or: How Not to Discriminate Against Pregnant Employees

February 17, 2012

This week, the EEOC held a public meeting on unlawful discrimination against pregnant workers and workers with caregiving responsibilities at which experts, including the National Women’s Law Center’s own Vice President and General Counsel Emily Martin, presented compelling testimony setting out the widespread and often blatant ways in which employers continue to unlawfully discriminate in the workplace. Members of the Commission expressed dismay, if not complete surprise, that nearly 35 years after the Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA) was passed in 1978, discrimination on the basis of pregnancy persists, in the words of EEOC Chair Jacqueline A. Berrien, “unnecessarily depriving women of the means to support their families.”

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More Resources

Fact Sheet | Women's Stake in the Battle Over Collective Bargaining Rights

June 05, 2012

The Senate is considering legislation that would abolish or sharply limit collective bargaining rights, including the collective bargaining rights of public employees.  Attacks on employees’ rights to collectively bargain directly threaten working women and the public services they provide. This fact sheet outlines the importance of this battle for working women and their families.

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Coalition Action Materials | Letter to Congress Re: Co-Sponsor and Support the Paycheck Fairness Act (S. 3220, H.R. 1519)

June 04, 2012

It’s time for Congress to stand up for the rights of working women and to advance fair pay. On behalf of a broad coalition of organizations that promote economic opportunity for women and full enforcement of antidiscrimination laws, we urge you to co-sponsor and work to swiftly pass the Paycheck Fairness Act.

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Fact Sheet | Paycheck Fairness: Closing the "Factor Other Than Sex" Gap in the Equal Pay Act

May 30, 2012

This fact sheet discusses how the Paycheck Fairness Act would close the loophole that courts have opened in the “factor other than sex” defense and ensure that employers may not value the work of men and women differently unless there is a legitimate business reason for doing so.  

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Fact Sheet | Myths and Facts: What the Paycheck Fairness Act Would Really Do

May 30, 2012

Opponents of the Paycheck Fairness Act have put forth rhetoric about the bill that is misleading – this document contrasts the various myths about the bill and explains what the Paycheck Fairness Act would accomplish in reality.  The Paycheck Fairness Act would strengthen current laws against wage discrimination by protecting employees who voluntarily share pay information with colleagues from retaliation, fully compensating victims of sex-based pay discrimination, empowering women and girls by strengthening their negotiation skills, and holding employers more accountable under the Equal Pay Act.

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Fact Sheet | Women in Construction: 6.9 Percent is Not Enough.

May 22, 2012

The typical construction worker earns nearly $19.00 an hour - double the typical wage in female-dominated occupations such as home health aides, maids and child care workers.  This fact sheet discusses the participation of women in the construction industry and explains how increasing women's participation in construction and other fields traditionally dominated by men is critical to ensuring women's economic security.

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