Tester Champions Paycheck Fairness on Equal Pay Day

Montana women still only make 73 cents for every dollar a man makes

(U.S. Senate) – U.S. Senator Jon Tester recognized Equal Pay Day by reintroducing the Paycheck Fairness Act, a bill that helps female employees close the gender wage gap.

“It’s ridiculous that employers can get away with paying their female and male employees different salaries for the same job,” Tester said. “Equal work deserves equal worth, regardless whether you’re a man or a woman, it’s just that simple.”

More than 50 years after the passage of the Equal Pay Act of 1963, American women still only earn 80 cents, on average, for every dollar a man earns. The gap is even wider for women in Montana, who only make an average of 73 cents for every dollar a man makes—a deficit of $13,000 in median earnings each year.

Equal Pay Day marks the additional number of days an average woman must work in order to earn the same yearly wage as her male counterparts. This year, the average American woman had to work an additional 94 days to make the same amount as her male colleagues did last year.

The Paycheck Fairness Act would strengthen and close loopholes in the Equal Pay Act of 1963 by making salary information more transparent, holding employers accountable for discriminatory practices, and strengthening protections and remedies for whistleblowers.

Tester has been a staunch advocate for The Paycheck Fairness Act, cosponsoring the bill last Congress and condemning his colleagues who voted against the bill in 2014.