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Whereas, More than 35 years after the passage of the Equal Pay Act and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, women continue to suffer the consequences of inequitable pay differentials; and

Whereas, In 1998 women earned only 73 percent of the wages earned by men, and this disparity is commonly referred to as "the wage gap"; and

Whereas, According to the National Academy of Sciences Report, between on-third and on-half of the wage difference between men and women cannot be explained by differences in experience, education, or other legitimate qualifications; and

Whereas, If current wage patterns continue, a 25-year-old woman who works full-time, year-round for the next 40 years will earn $523,000 less than the average 25-year-old man; and

Whereas, The 1998 Bureau of the Census states that in 1997, 12.8 million families were maintained by women, representing 18.2 percent of all families, and 62 percent of women who maintained families were employed in 1997; and

Whereas, A study by the Institute for Women's Policy Research and the AFL-CIO concluded that more than 50 percent of two earner and single mother households across the country would be lifted out of poverty if equal pay were enacted and enforced at the state level; and

Whereas, Lower lifetime earnings translate in lower pensions and income for women in their senior years and contributes to a higher poverty rate for elderly women; and

Whereas, May 11, 2000, symbolizes the day on which the wages paid to American women so far in 2000, when added to women's earnings for all of 1999, finally equal the 1999 earnings of American men; and

Whereas, Soroptimist International of the Americas is committed to improving the lives of women and families in the community by increasing public awareness about the need for equal pay; now, therefore, be it

Resolved by Assembly Member Patricia Wiggins and Senator Wesley Chesbro, That they recognize May 11, 2000, as Equal Pay Day to raise public awareness of pay equity issues that continue to persist in the state and nation, and urge employers to review their pay practices related to pay equity.

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