Last Wednesday, for the first time ever, the U.S. Senate decided to debate the Paycheck Fairness Act (PFA). This proposed law, sponsored in the Senate by Barbara Mikulski (MD-D), would strengthen the Equal Pay Act of 1963.
Today, voting rights are still challenged by right-wing voter suppression tactics designed to restrict the participation of voters whose support would likely favor the anti-Citizens United, pro-woman and pro-labor agenda.
Today, August 26th marks Women’s Equality Day. It is also a little more than two months from the 2014 midterm elections. In my mind, these two things are inextricably linked.
Social Security is the largest source of income for most older women – for a substantial number of senior women it is their only source of income. The chained CPI would cut thousands of dollars from their already modest Social Security retirement and disability benefits.
In 1966, Congress adopted a federal minimum wage for tipped workers, but it was only 50 percent of the minimum wage for other workers. The federal standard is just above two dollars an hour, and it has remained this low since 1991. Sounds out of this world, right? $2.13 an hour is less than 30 percent of the standard minimum wage, which is $7.25.