LANSING – Standing alongside groups fighting to end wage discrimination, Speaker Pro Tempore Pam Byrnes (D-Lyndon Township) today introduced legislation to create new legal avenues and provide tougher penalties for employers that engage in this practice. Byrnes was joined by advocates of pay equity in recognition of Equal Pay Day.
"When companies shortchange women, their families also pay the price," said Byrnes, a sponsor of the plan. "There is less money to put toward mortgage payments, less money to buy food to put on the table and less money to pay for a child's college education. We have to stand up for Michigan workers and demand nothing short of equal pay for equal work."
According to the American Association of University Women (AAUW), Michigan is ranked 44th in the nation for wage parity between men and women. Women working in Michigan are paid 71 cents for every $1 men make – a 29 percent pay gap. This puts Michigan far behind the national gender pay gap of 78 cents per dollar.
Last year, the Senate blocked a similar House plan. Under the plan introduced today, failing to provide equal compensation for work of comparable value will be a violation of the state's Elliot-Larsen Civil Rights Act. Under the plan, gender-based pay discrimination would be a misdemeanor, with employers facing fines or up to 90 days in jail for not complying.
The fight for equal pay landed in national headlines in January when President Obama signed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, ensuring women and other victims of pay discrimination can challenge their employers' practices. Lilly Ledbetter was a supervisor at Goodyear Tire and Rubber's plant in Gadsden, Ala., from 1979 until her retirement in 1998. By the end of 1997, Ledbetter was being paid $550 less per month than the lowest paid male area manager, despite almost 20 years of service.
House members intend to begin committee hearings on the legislation in the next couple of weeks.
Groups gathering alongside the lawmakers included: the AAUW, Business and Professional Women, WomenWork!, National
Organization for Women, Pay Equity Network, League of Women Voters, Michigan Women's Commission and others.
"We cannot let this discrimination go unchecked," Byrnes said. "While we've come a long way on issues of equality, there's much left to do in order to eliminate this wage gap. Men and women should be treated equally in the workplace – anything short of that is unacceptable."