In the near future, I plan to re-introduce legislation that would make it illegal to discriminate based on rate of pay. This bill was SB 36 in the 2023-24 session. Members who co-sponsored this legislation previously include Senators Haywood, Hughes, Fontana, Kearney, Kane, Schwank, Collett, Street, Costa, Cappelletti, Santarsiero, and Comitta.

Women in Pennsylvania and in the United States have long endured unequal pay in the workplace. According to The Bureau of Labor Statistics, American women earned $0.82 for every $1.00 that a male colleague earned in 2022, a figure barely changed since 2002 where it was $0.80 for every $1.00. Clearly there has been little progress towards achieving fairness in wages across genders but this issue and other forms of wage discrimination have a simple solution in Pennsylvania. This legislation would correct the disparity and effectively make it an illicit practice to discriminate against employees in terms of their wages.

This bill clarifies the definition of “wages” and other compensation and defines “comparable work” as work that requires similar skill, effort and responsibility. This bill also clarifies the circumstances under which employers can legitimately pay employees at different pay scales. Employers must demonstrate that the difference in any employee’s pay is based on one or more of the following factors:
 

• A seniority-based system;
• A merit-based system;
• A system which measures earnings by quantity or quality of production or sales;
• Education, training, or experience.

The United States of America can only be a truly inclusive and equal society if it is free of all forms of discrimination. This includes unfair hiring practices. Establishing fair pay equity in Pennsylvania is one step towards realizing this ideal.

Please join me in co-sponsoring this legislation.

Statutes/Laws affected:
Printer's No. 0182: P.L.1913, No.694