Bill Clinton: “I am so pleased to join my fellow Senators to press for passage of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act. In particular, I…”

“I am so pleased to join my fellow Senators to press for passage of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act. In particular, I would like to salute Chairman Kennedy, a champion of equality for decades in this body, and Senator Mikulski, who has been a tireless leader in the effort to achieve equal pay for equal work and who is heading the effort to pass this legislation on the floor of the Senate. This legislation would help us deliver on the promise of equality and fairness in the workplace--not just for women but for all workers, men and women, subject to discrimination on the basis of gender, race, ethnic background, age, and disability. That is why I have supported the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act so strongly--and will continue to support it until the Senate passes it and our new President can sign it into law. In America today, women earn only 78 cents on the dollar for doing the same jobs as men--far less if they are women of color. And we still don't value or recognize some of the hardest and most productive work done in our society: caring for children, elderly parents, and the seriously ill--work that is largely done by women. The disparities in income, just one important example, are not only harmful to women. It is not just a mother who suffers when she is denied equal pay for equal work; her children and family suffer too. Families earn an average of $4,000 less each year because of pay disparities.”