[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 81 Introduced in House (IH)]
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119th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. CON. RES. 81
Recognizing the significance of equal pay and the disparity between
wages paid to men and women.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
March 26, 2026
Ms. Lois Frankel of Florida (for herself, Ms. DeLauro, Ms. Leger
Fernandez, Ms. Williams of Georgia, Mr. Amo, Ms. Ansari, Ms. Barragan,
Mr. Bell, Mr. Beyer, Mr. Bishop, Ms. Bonamici, Mr. Boyle of
Pennsylvania, Ms. Brown, Ms. Brownley, Ms. Budzinski, Ms. Bynum, Mr.
Carbajal, Mr. Carson, Ms. Castor of Florida, Mr. Castro of Texas, Mrs.
Cherfilus-McCormick, Ms. Chu, Mr. Cleaver, Mr. Correa, Mr. Costa, Ms.
Craig, Ms. Crockett, Mr. Davis of Illinois, Ms. Dean of Pennsylvania,
Ms. DeGette, Ms. DelBene, Mr. DeSaulnier, Ms. Dexter, Mrs. Dingell, Mr.
Doggett, Ms. Elfreth, Mr. Evans of Pennsylvania, Mrs. Foushee, Ms.
Friedman, Mr. Frost, Ms. Garcia of Texas, Mr. Goldman of New York, Mr.
Gomez, Ms. Goodlander, Mr. Green of Texas, Mrs. Grijalva, Mrs. Hayes,
Mr. Hoyer, Mr. Huffman, Mr. Ivey, Mr. Jackson of Illinois, Ms. Jacobs,
Ms. Jayapal, Mr. Johnson of Georgia, Ms. Johnson of Texas, Ms.
Kamlager-Dove, Mr. Keating, Ms. Kelly of Illinois, Mr. Kennedy of New
York, 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, Mrs. McClain
Delaney, Ms. McClellan, Ms. McCollum, Mr. McGovern, Mrs. McIver, Mr.
Meeks, Mr. Menefee, Mr. Menendez, Ms. Meng, Mr. Min, Ms. Moore of
Wisconsin, Mr. Morelle, Ms. Morrison, Mr. Moskowitz, Mr. Moulton, Mr.
Mrvan, Mr. Mullin, Mr. Nadler, Mr. Neal, Ms. Norton, Mr. Olszewski, Ms.
Omar, Mr. Pallone, Mr. Panetta, Ms. Pelosi, Mr. Peters, Ms. Pettersen,
Ms. Pingree, Mr. Pocan, Ms. Pou, Mr. Quigley, Mrs. Ramirez, Mr. Raskin,
Mr. Riley of New York, Ms. Rivas, Ms. Ross, Mr. Ruiz, Ms. Salinas, Ms.
Scanlon, Ms. Schakowsky, Mr. Schneider, Ms. Scholten, Mr. Scott of
Virginia, Ms. Simon, Mr. Smith of Washington, Mr. Soto, Ms. Stansbury,
Mr. Stanton, Ms. Stevens, Ms. Strickland, Mr. Swalwell, Mrs. Sykes, Mr.
Takano, Mr. Thanedar, Mr. Thompson of California, Ms. Titus, Ms. Tlaib,
Ms. Tokuda, Mr. Tonko, Mrs. Torres of California, Mr. Torres of New
York, Mr. Vargas, Ms. Velazquez, Mr. Walkinshaw, Ms. Wasserman Schultz,
Ms. Wilson of Florida, Ms. Adams, Mr. Mfume, Ms. Hoyle of Oregon, Ms.
Sanchez, and Mr. Subramanyam) 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 81 cents for every dollar paid to all
men, while women overall, including part-time and seasonal workers, are
paid just 76 cents for every dollar paid to men, Latinas working full-
time, year-round are paid 58 cents, American Indian and Alaska Native
women are paid 58 cents, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander women are
paid 67 cents, African-American women are paid 65 cents, White, non-
Hispanic women are paid 77 cents, and Asian-American women are paid 96
cents, for every dollar paid to White, non-Hispanic men;
Whereas March 26, 2026, is Equal Pay Day, marking the day that symbolizes how
long into 2026 women must work to make what men were paid in 2025;
Whereas April 9, 2026, is observed as Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and
Pacific Islander Women's Equal Pay Day; June 17, 2026, is observed as
LGBTQ+ Equal Pay Awareness Day; July 21, 2026, is observed as Black
Women's Equal Pay Day; September 15, 2626 is observed as Native Hawaiian
Pacific Islander Women's Equal Pay Day; October 8, 2026, is observed as
Latinas' Equal Pay Day; October 20, 2026, is observed as Disabled
Women's Equal Pay Day; and November 19, 2026, is observed as Native
Women's Equal Pay Day;
Whereas LGBTQ+ women may face further pay disparities;
Whereas the gender wage gap has now grown for the second year in a row;
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 19 years, White women in 50 years, Black women in
199 years, and Latinas in 153 years;
Whereas the disparity in median annual earnings for women and men working full-
time, year-round is $13,570, which can add up to nearly $542,800 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
78 percent of men's earnings, and women with a professional degree being
paid 87 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 cents for every dollar paid to fathers, and disabled women
working full-time and all year typically are paid 68 cents for every
dollar paid to non-disabled men.
Whereas the gender wage gap collectively costs women employed full-time and all
year in the United States more than $1,182,864,800,000 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, nearly 10 additional months of
rent, more than 7 additional months of mortgage 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, 8 additional
months of premiums for employer-based health insurance, more than 17
months of food, 62 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 $241 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 Thursday, March 26,
2026, as ``Equal Pay Day'' to represent the additional time that women
must work to compensate for the on average 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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