Mitch Landrieu: “Today, Mr. President, and colleagues, is a very special day in America. We are celebrating here in the Senate, and…”

“Today, Mr. President, and colleagues, is a very special day in America. We are celebrating here in the Senate, and millions of people around our Nation are celebrating this special day. It is ``Take Our Daughters to Work Day.'' And mothers and fathers and aunts and uncles and friends are taking their special charges to work with them to see perhaps a side of life that some young girls do not get to see. It is the sixth year that our Nation has celebrated in this way. I wanted to just say for the record that we have made a lot of progress in our Nation in the past 30 years. In 1968, only 20 percent of 18- to 24-year-old women were enrolled in college. Today, thank goodness that number is climbing, and we are at 36 percent. The median earnings for women in 1968 was only $18,500. Today, women earn an average of $23,000. We are making progress, but not enough. I saw a statistic the other day that still 80 percent of all women who work out of the home earn less than $25,000, earning 74 cents on every dollar earned by their male counterparts. In 1968, women owned fewer than 5 percent of the Nation's businesses. That number has doubled, and I am proud to say that there are more people employed by women-owned businesses than all the Fortune 500 companies in the country. So we are making progress. Today is a day to honor the progress that is being made.”