Mayoral Proclamation - Equal Pay Day - 04.14.2015

WHEREAS, More than 50 years after the passage of the Equal Pay Act, women, especially minority women, continue to suffer the consequences of unequal pay; and

WHEREAS, According to the U.S. Census Bureau, women working full time, year round in 2013 typically earned 78 percent of what men earned, indicating little change or progress in pay equity; and

WHEREAS, According to Graduating to a Pay Gap, a 2012 research report by the American Association of University Women (AAUW), the gender pay gap is evident one year after college graduation, even after controlling for factors known to affect earnings, such as occupation, hours worked, and college major; and

WHEREAS, In 2009 the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act was signed into law, which gives back to employees their day in court to challenge a pay gap, and now we must pass the Paycheck Fairness Act, which would amend the Equal Pay Act by closing loopholes and improving the law’s effectiveness; and

WHEREAS, According to one estimate, college-educated women working full time earn more than a half million dollars less than their male peers do over the course of a lifetime; and

WHEREAS, Nearly four in ten mothers are primary breadwinners in their households, and nearly two-thirds are primary or significant earners, making pay equity critical to families’ economic security; and

WHEREAS, A lifetime of lower pay means women have less income to save for retirement and less income counted in a Social Security or pension benefit formula; and

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

WHEREAS, Fair pay strengthens the security of families today and eases future retirement costs while enhancing the American economy; and

WHEREAS, Tuesday, April 14th, symbolizes the time in 2015 when the wages paid to American women catch up to the wages paid to men from the previous year.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, That I, Timothy J. Mahoney, Mayor of the City of Fargo, do hereby proclaim April 14, 2015 as Equal Pay Day in the City of Fargo, North Dakota and urge citizens to recognize the full value of women’s skills and significant contributions to the labor force and further encourage businesses to conduct an internal pay evaluation to ensure women are being paid fairly.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the Seal of the City of Fargo, North Dakota to be affixed this 13th day of April, 2015.