[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 21 Introduced in House (IH)]
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119th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. CON. RES. 21
Recognizing the significance of equal pay and the disparity between
wages paid to men and women.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
March 25, 2025
Ms. Lois Frankel of Florida (for herself, Ms. DeLauro, Ms. Williams of
Georgia, Ms. Leger Fernandez, Ms. Balint, Ms. Barragan, Mrs. Beatty,
Mr. Bell, Mr. Bera, Mr. Beyer, Mr. Bishop, Ms. Bonamici, Mr. Boyle of
Pennsylvania, Ms. Brown, Ms. Brownley, Ms. Budzinski, Mr. Carbajal, Mr.
Carson, Mr. Carter of Louisiana, Ms. Castor of Florida, Mr. Castro of
Texas, Mrs. Cherfilus-McCormick, Ms. Chu, Ms. Clarke of New York, Mr.
Cleaver, Mr. Connolly, Mr. Correa, Mr. Costa, Mr. Davis of Illinois,
Ms. Dean of Pennsylvania, Ms. DeGette, Ms. DelBene, Mr. Deluzio, Ms.
Dexter, Mrs. Dingell, Mr. Doggett, Ms. Elfreth, Ms. Escobar, Mr. Evans
of Pennsylvania, Mr. Fields, Mr. Foster, Mrs. Foushee, Mr. Frost, Mr.
Garamendi, Ms. Garcia of Texas, Mr. Goldman of New York, Mr. Vicente
Gonzalez of Texas, Mr. Gottheimer, Mr. Green of Texas, Mr. Huffman, Mr.
Jackson of Illinois, Ms. Jacobs, Mr. Johnson of Georgia, Ms. Johnson of
Texas, Ms. Kamlager-Dove, Ms. Kaptur, Mr. Keating, Ms. Kelly of
Illinois, Mr. Kennedy of New York, Mr. Khanna, Mr. Krishnamoorthi, Mr.
Landsman, Mr. Larsen of Washington, Mr. Larson of Connecticut, Mr.
Latimer, Ms. Lee of Pennsylvania, Ms. Lee of Nevada, Mr. Lynch, Mr.
Magaziner, Mr. Mannion, Ms. Matsui, Ms. McBride, Mrs. McClain Delaney,
Ms. McClellan, Ms. McCollum, Mr. McGovern, Mr. Meeks, Ms. Meng, Mr.
Morelle, Mr. Moskowitz, Mr. Moulton, Mr. Nadler, Mr. Neal, Ms. Norton,
Ms. Ocasio-Cortez, Mr. Olszewski, Ms. Omar, Mr. Pallone, Mr. Panetta,
Mr. Peters, Ms. Pettersen, Ms. Pingree, Mr. Pocan, Ms. Pressley, Mrs.
Ramirez, Ms. Randall, Mr. Raskin, Ms. Ross, Ms. Salinas, Ms. Sanchez,
Ms. Scanlon, Ms. Schakowsky, Mr. Schneider, Ms. Scholten, Mr. David
Scott of Georgia, Mr. Scott of Virginia, Ms. Sherrill, Ms. Simon, Mr.
Smith of Washington, Ms. Stansbury, Mr. Stanton, Ms. Strickland, Mr.
Subramanyam, Mr. Suozzi, Mr. Swalwell, Mrs. Sykes, Mr. Thanedar, Ms.
Titus, Ms. Tlaib, Ms. Tokuda, Mrs. Torres of California, Mr. Vargas,
Ms. Velazquez, Ms. Wasserman Schultz, Mrs. Watson Coleman, Ms. Wilson
of Florida, and Mr. Takano) submitted the following concurrent
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Education and
Workforce
_______________________________________________________________________
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
Recognizing the significance of equal pay and the disparity between
wages paid to men and women.
Whereas section 6(d) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 206(d))
prohibits discrimination in compensation for equal work on the basis of
sex;
Whereas title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e et seq.)
prohibits discrimination in compensation because of race, color,
religion, national origin, or sex;
Whereas, more than 6 decades after the passage of the Equal Pay Act of 1963 (29
U.S.C. 206 note), Census Bureau data show that women working full-time,
year-round are paid an average of 83 cents for every dollar paid to all
men, while women overall, including part-time and seasonal workers, are
paid just 75 cents for every dollar paid to men, and Latinas are paid 58
cents, American Indian and Alaska Native women are paid 58 cents, Native
Hawaiian and Pacific Islander women are paid 65 cents, African-American
women are paid 66 cents, White, non-Hispanic women are paid 80 cents,
and Asian-American women are paid 94 cents, for every dollar paid to
White, non-Hispanic men;
Whereas March 25, 2025, is Equal Pay Day, marking the day that symbolizes how
long into 2025 women must work to make what men were paid in 2024;
Whereas April 7, 2025, is observed as Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and
Pacific Islander Women's Equal Pay Day; July 10, 2025, is observed as
Black Women's Equal Pay Day; August 28, 2025, is observed as Native
Hawaiian Pacific Islander Women's Equal Pay Day; October 8, 2025, is
observed as Latinas' Equal Pay Day; October 23, 2025, is observed as
Disabled Women's Equal Pay Day; and November 18, 2025, is observed as
Native Women's Equal Pay Day;
Whereas LGBTQI+ women and women with disabilities may face further pay
disparities;
Whereas, for the first time in 21 years, the gender wage gap grew in 2024;
Whereas, if current trends continue, Asian women are projected to close the
gender pay gap for all workers, including part-time, full-time, and
seasonal workers, in 23 years, White women in 43 years, Black women in
121 years, and Latinas in 187 years;
Whereas the disparity in median annual earnings for women and men working full-
time, year-round is $11,550, which can add up to nearly $462,000 over a
career;
Whereas women's median earnings are less than men's at every level of academic
achievement, with women with less than a high school diploma being paid
71 percent of men's earnings, and women with a professional degree being
paid 70 percent of men's earnings at the same level of education;
Whereas women are often paid less than men with lower levels of education, with
women with associate's degrees paid less than men with a high school
diploma, women with master's degrees paid less than men with bachelor's
degrees, and women with doctorate degrees paid less than men with
master's degrees;
Whereas, in the United States, mothers working full-time and all year typically
are paid 74 percent of what fathers are paid;
Whereas the gender wage gap collectively costs women employed full-time and all
year in the United States more than $994,000,000 in annual lost wages,
so that families have less money to spend on goods and services that
help drive economic growth;
Whereas, if the annual gender wage gap were eliminated for just 1 year, on
average, a working woman in the United States would have enough money
for approximately 13 months of childcare, more than 10 additional months
of rent, more than 7 additional months of mortgage and utilities
payments, almost 3 semesters of tuition and fees for a 4-year public
university or the full cost of tuition and fees for attending a 2-year
college, almost 9 additional months of premiums for employer-based
health insurance, almost 75 weeks of food, more than 60 percent of the
maximum annual individual 401(k) contribution, or enough money to pay
off student loan debt in less than 3 years;
Whereas women hold nearly two-thirds of the Nation's outstanding student loan
debt, totaling over $929,000,000,000, and are less likely to be able to
pay off their student loan debt promptly due to wage disparities;
Whereas the wage gap impacts women's ability to save for retirement and women's
total Social Security and pension benefits, and older women are more
likely than men to live in poverty;
Whereas sex-based wage differentials reduce family incomes and contribute to the
higher poverty rates among women and their families;
Whereas a wage gap exists in nearly every occupational field, but opening
traditionally male-dominated jobs to women and reducing occupational
segregation by sex increases earnings for women;
Whereas nearly two-thirds of workers paid the minimum wage or less are women,
and the concentration of women in low-wage jobs is a significant
contributor to the wage gap;
Whereas the gender wage gap between union women and men is about three-quarters
the size of the wage gap between nonunion women and men, and women union
members typically are paid $216 more per week than women who are not
represented by unions;
Whereas two-thirds of private sector workers report that employers either
prohibit or discourage them from discussing their pay, which can keep
the existence of pay discrimination hidden and prevent remedying that
discrimination;
Whereas the lack of family friendly policies, such as access to affordable,
quality childcare, paid family and medical leave, paid sick days, and
fair and predictable work schedules, forces many caregivers to choose
between providing for their families financially and ensuring their
loved ones receive quality care, and contributes to the wage gap;
Whereas at least 1 in 3 women have experienced sexual harassment during their
careers, and an estimated 87 to 94 percent of those who experience
sexual harassment never file a formal complaint;
Whereas workplace harassment forces many women to leave their occupation or
industry, or pass up opportunities for advancement, and this contributes
to the gender wage gap;
Whereas equal pay strengthens the economic security of families and enhances
retirement savings;
Whereas when women are paid fairly, families are stronger, businesses prosper,
and American values and the economy are strengthened; and
Whereas numerous national organizations have designated Tuesday, March 25, 2025,
as ``Equal Pay Day'' to represent the additional time that women must
work to compensate for the average 17-percent lower wages paid to women
working full-time, year-round last year: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring),
That Congress--
(1) recognizes the disparity between wages paid to women
and men and its impact on women, families, and the Nation; and
(2) reaffirms its commitment to supporting equal pay and to
narrowing the gender wage gap.
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