Fact Sheet

The minimum wage and the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) are two federal policies that help low-income workers, especially women, make ends meet and support their families.  Improvements to the minimum wage and EITC are necessary as important complements to – not substitutes for – one another. 

Download the full fact sheet below.

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The Minimum Wage and the EITC: Complementary Strategies Helping Women Lift Their Families Out of Poverty

This chart summarizes the impact of sequestration cuts on Head Start, Child Care and Early Education across different states. In the current context, sequestration refers to a set of automatic, across-the-board cuts required by the Budget Control Act of 2011. Read more »

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Impact of Sequestration Cuts on Head Start, Child Care and Early Education: State and Local Examples

The 2012-2013 Supreme Court Term witnessed a number of blockbuster cases affecting women’s rights, from affirmative action to workplace protections to voting rights to marriage equality. The results in those cases were decidedly mixed, with some historic victories, but also, unfortunately, heartbreaking setbacks. The National Women’s Law Center participated in most of these cases. Read more »

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Supreme Court Review 2012-2013 term

The health care law takes significant steps in making breastfeeding more accessible and affordable for millions of Americans. Read more »

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Breastfeeding and the Health Care Law 7-31-13

Emergency contraception (EC) is a time-sensitive FDA-approved form of contraception that prevents pregnancy.  Timely access to EC is particularly important for survivors of sexual assault. Read more »

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EC to Sexual Assault Survivors 6-2013

In 1963 – the year the Equal Pay Act was signed into law – women working full time, year round were typically paid just 59 cents for every dollar paid to their male counterparts.¹ Enforcement of the Equal Pay Act and related civil rights laws has helped narrow the wage gap, but significant pay disparitie Read more »

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The Importance of Fair Pay for Delaware Women

As most states gradually begin to recover economically after several years in which their budgets were under tremendous strain, a number of the states are taking this opportunity to make or consider new investments in early care and education. Read more »

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State Updates: Early Care and Education

The minimum wage is falling short for millions of Americans — especially for women, who represent nearly two-thirds of minimum wage workers across the country, and at least half of minimum wage workers in every state. Today, the federal minimum wage is just $7.25 per hour, and full-time earnings of $14,500 a year leave a family of three thousands of dollars below the federal poverty line. Read more »

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Women and the Minimum Wage, State by State Chart

Tens of thousands of workers in Massachusetts – mostly women and people of color – struggle to make ends meet on minimum wage earnings.  A bill pending in the Massachusetts legislature (H. 1701/S. Read more »

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Fair Pay for Women and People of Color in Massachusetts Requires Increasing the Minimum Wage and the Tipped Minimum Wage

For a PDF version of this factsheet with footnotes, please see below.
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Federal 20 Week Abortion Ban FS 6-14-13