HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

149th GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 16

DESIGNATING APRIL 4 AS "EQUAL PAY DAY" IN THE STATE OF DELAWARE.

WHEREAS, more than 50 years after the passage of the Equal Pay Act and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, women, especially women of color and single mothers, continue to suffer the consequences of unequal pay; and

WHEREAS, according to U.S. Census Bureau Statistics for 2015, women in Delaware working full-time, year-round earned on average 88.5% of the earnings of men working full-time, year-round, which is a remarkable improvement over 2014’s gap of 18 percentage points. This improvement is notable, but the fact that it reflects an overall average of all women must be recognized; and

WHEREAS, the situation is very different when wage statistics of women of color are addressed. The U.S. Census Bureau Statistics for 2015 show that African American women earned 77% of the earnings of white men, and Hispanic women earned only 68 %; and

WHEREAS, in Delaware households headed by a single parent, for every dollar earned by men heading such households, women on their own with children earned 60 cents; and

WHEREAS, nearly four in ten mothers are primary breadwinners in their households, pay equity is critical to families’ economic security; and

WHEREAS, fair pay equity policies can be implemented without undue cost or hardship in both the public and private sectors; and

WHEREAS, April 4th symbolizes the point in the year when the wages paid to American women catch up to the wages paid to men from the previous year.

NOW, THEREFORE:

BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the 149th General Assembly of the State of Delaware, the Senate concurring therein, that April 4, 2017, is designated as “Equal Pay Day” in the State of Delaware.

SYNOPSIS

This Concurrent Resolution recognizes April 4, 2017, as "Equal Pay Day."