Beginning with the Nineteenth Amendment that afforded women the right to vote, women have been on a slow but steady trek to receive equal rights in America. In terms of fair pay and salary the law that prohibits gender discrimination is the Equal Pay Act of 1963. According to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission explains that “men and women in the same workplace be given equal pay for equal work. The jobs need not be identical, but they must be substantially equal. Job content (not job titles) determines whether jobs are substantially equal.” (eeoc.gov) Although this law set the basis for equal pay, today there still is disparities in salary between men and women. As well as amongst different races, black and Hispanic women make a lower percentage to the dollar. Contemporary Women’s Health Issues for Today and the Future explains the pay disparities amongst different races. Amongst men of their own race there was a biggest disparity between white women to white men by 79%, Asian women to Asian men 82%, black women to black men 94% and Hispanic women to Hispanic men had a 90% earning difference. (Kolander, 2009, p. 11) According to Pew Research “the Census Bureau found that, in 2017, full-time, year-round working women earned 80% of what their male counterparts earned. Women ages 25 to 34 earned 89 cents for every dollar a man in the same age group earned.” (pewresearch.org) There has been an improvement “when the Equal Pay Act was passed in 1963, women made 58 cents for every dollar earned by men and in the year 2002, women were paid 73 cents for every dollar earned by men. (Kolander, 2009, p.11)

Even though the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Equal Pay Act of 1963 have been passed for many years ago there are still issues and salary discrepancies, as a result in March 2019 legislation has been introduced and so far has been passed in the House. This new legislation is called H.R.7- Paycheck Fairness Act which has to go through the process of becoming a law by being passed in the Senate and then signed by the President. This law is basically the continuation Fair Labor Standards of 1938. In the beginning of the legislature it explains the premise of the bill “addresses wage discrimination on the basis of sex. It amends equal pay provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to (1) restrict the use of the bona fide factor defense to wage discrimination claims, (2) enhance nonretaliation prohibitions, (3) make it unlawful to require an employee to sign a contract or waiver prohibiting the employee from disclosing information about the employee’s wages, and (4) increase civil penalties for violations of equal pay provisions.” (congress.gov)

An aspect of the Paycheck Fairness Act that seems incredibly beneficial that is included would be negotiation skills training. Personally, that is something that I had to learn as a professional nurse and continue to have to train in my negotiation skills on a continual basis. In this bill the Secretary of Labor will give out certain grants to women and young girls to teach them negotiation skills. The Paycheck Fairness Act explains that “the Secretary of Labor may make grants on a competitive basis to eligible entities to carry out negotiation skills training programs for the purposes of addressing pay disparities, including through outreach to women and girls.” (congress.gov)

Being able to negotiate is big part of women’s health because it largely effects women’s overall income and it influences self-esteem and how a woman sees and values herself. If women are able to build up the confidence to ask for what they believe they are worth, then that will have tremendous effects on their self-imagine. This along with a healthy diet and exercise, being outdoors and practicing safe behavior, these are all qualities that create a healthy lifestyle. Along with the physical aspect’s women can consider their spiritual life as well; this sort of spiritual health refers to “your philosopher about living for yourself and living with others.” (Kolander, 2009, p.73) I really appreciate that definition because it reflects interpersonal and intrapersonal skills that will lead to a well-balanced life.

References

DeLauro, R. L. (2019, January 30). H.R.7- Paycheck fairness act. US Congress. Retrieved from:

https://www.ncsl.org/research/labor-and-employment/the-current-state-of-equal-pay-laws.aspx

Graf, N. & Brown, A., & Patten E. (2009, March 22). The narrowing, but persistent, gender gap in pay. Pew Research Center. Retrieved from: https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/03/22/gender-pay-gap-facts/

Kolander, C., & Ballard, D. R., & Chandler, C. K. (2009). Contemporary Women’s Health Issues for Today and the Future. (5^thed.). New York, NY: McGraw Hill.

U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Community. Equal Pay/ Compensation Discrimination. Retrieved from: https://www.eeoc.gov/statutes/equal-pay-act-1963