Assembly Concurrent Resolution No. 17–Assemblymen Chowning, Anderson, Andonov, Angle, Arberry, Atkinson, Beers, Brown, Buckley, Carpenter, Christensen, Claborn, Collins, Conklin, Geddes, Gibbons, Giunchigliani, Goicoechea, Goldwater, Grady, Griffin, Gustavson, Hardy, Hettrick, Horne, Knecht, Koivisto, Leslie, Mabey, Manendo, Marvel, McClain, McCleary, Mortenson, Oceguera, Ohrenschall, Parks, Perkins, Pierce, Sherer, Weber and Williams

 

Joint Sponsors: Senators Carlton, Amodei, Care, Cegavske, Coffin, Hardy, Mathews, McGinness, Neal, Nolan, O’Connell, Raggio, Rawson, Rhoads, Schneider, Shaffer, Tiffany, Titus, Townsend, Washington and Wiener

 

FILE NUMBER..........

 

Assembly Concurrent RESOLUTION—Recognizing
April 15, 2003, as Equal Pay Day in Nevada.

 

    Whereas, When the Equal Pay Act, requiring employers to pay

all employees equally for equal work, was signed in 1963, women

who worked full-time, year-round made 59 cents, on average, for

every dollar earned by men, and 40 years later women earn only 76

cents of that dollar as the wage gap closes at an even slower rate,

resulting in a change of less than one-half penny per year; and

    Whereas, According to reports by the Bureau of the Census of

the Department of Commerce, the effects of the wage gap on

women of color is even greater, with black women earning only 69

cents for every dollar earned by white men, and Hispanic women

earning only 56 cents of that dollar; and

    Whereas, “A New Look Through the Glass Ceiling: Where

Are the Women?,” a report using data compiled by the General

Accounting Office, states that, of the 10 industries surveyed which

employ 71 percent of all employed women and 73 percent of all

female managers, women who are full-time managers are paid less

and advance less often than male managers and that the wage gap

between female managers and their male counterparts widened

between 1995 and 2000 in 7 of the 10 industries; and

    Whereas, Many women are the sole support of their families

and wage discrimination has a huge impact on their children and the

quality of their lives, and it is estimated that America’s working

families lose $200 billion annually because of wage discrimination;

and

    Whereas, Over a working lifetime, this wage disparity costs

the average American woman and her family an estimated $250,000

in lost wages, impacting social security benefits and pensions; and

    Whereas, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits

wage discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender, religion or

national origin, and yet long after the Supreme Court made it clear

that Title VII prohibits wage discrimination even when the jobs are

not identical, as long as the work is comparable, wage

discrimination laws are poorly enforced and cases are extremely

difficult to win; and

    Whereas, Wage discrimination for any reason is detrimental to

our sense of justice and fairness and our belief in the American way;

and

    Whereas, While many people claim that the wage gap is the

result of differences in education, the Bureau of the Census reports

that a white male with a master’s degree earns $67,818 per year and

a black man with the same education earns only $51,336, with the

lowest paid being a similarly educated black woman, who earns

only $43,884; and

    Whereas, The National Committee on Pay Equity, founded in

1979, is a national coalition of over 80 organizations and thousands

of men and women from all walks of life who are working to

eliminate wage discrimination and to achieve pay equity that will

benefit society as a whole when all workers have jobs that pay a fair

and equitable wage, enabling them and their families to lead

healthy, fulfilling and productive lives; and

    Whereas, While the costs are minimal to employers, only 3 to

4 percent of payroll costs, pay equity wage adjustments can make a

substantial difference in the lives of the persons who are being

discriminated against; and

    Whereas, Every year, Equal Pay Day is marked on a Tuesday

in April because, on average, it takes women 7 workdays to earn the

same amount that men earn in 5 workdays and 15 months to match

the average man’s 12-month income; now, therefore, be it

    Resolved by the Assembly of the State of Nevada, the

Senate Concurring, That April 15, 2003, be recognized as Equal

Pay Day; and be it further

    Resolved, That the public and private employers in Nevada are

to be congratulated for lighting the way for other states to follow,

with the employers in our State ranking among the highest in the

nation in paying their employees equal pay for equal work; and be it

further

    Resolved, That all employers in Nevada, whether public or

private, are encouraged to compensate all employees fairly, based

on an objective evaluation of their jobs, considering factors such as

the skill, effort, responsibility and working conditions required for

each job; and be it further

    Resolved, That the Chief Clerk of the Assembly prepare and

transmit a copy of this resolution to Governor Kenny Guinn, to each

member of the Nevada Congressional Delegation and to Linda

Chavez-Thompson, the Chair of the National Committee on Pay

Equity.

 

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