[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 68 (Friday, April 9, 1999)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 17499-17500]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-9148]
[[Page 17497]]
_______________________________________________________________________
Part VI
The President
_______________________________________________________________________
Proclamation 7179--National Equal Pay Day, 1999
Presidential Documents
Federal Register / Vol. 64, No. 68 / Friday, April 9, 1999 /
Presidential Documents
___________________________________________________________________
Title 3--
The President
[[Page 17499]]
Proclamation 7179 of April 7, 1999
National Equal Pay Day, 1999
By the President of the United States of America
A Proclamation
We live in a time of remarkable promise. Our Nation's
economy is the strongest we have experienced in a
generation, creating more than 18 million new jobs
since 1993 and the fastest growth in real wages in more
than two decades. American women have contributed
greatly to this record of success; unfortunately, they
have not enjoyed an equal share in the prosperity they
have helped to create.
The typical woman who works full-time year-round earns
approximately 75 cents for every dollar the typical man
earns. An African American woman earns just 65 cents
and a Hispanic woman earns 55 cents for each dollar
that a white man earns. In the course of a week, this
pay gap can mean one less bag of groceries, skipping a
trip to the doctor, missing a rent payment, or not
being able to pay for day care. Over the course of a
working lifetime, it can mean thousands of dollars, a
smaller pension, and fewer savings to provide for a
comfortable retirement. And when a working woman is
denied equal pay, it doesn't just hurt her; it also
hurts her family. In more than 10 million American
households today, the mother is the only breadwinner.
Americans have always believed in justice and equality.
We have always believed that those who work hard should
be able to provide a decent living for themselves and
their children. If we are to live up to those ideals,
we must ensure that women do not suffer wage
discrimination. We must continue vigorous enforcement
of existing laws, such as the Equal Pay Act and Title
VII of the Civil Rights Act, so that no employer
undervalues or underpays the work performed by women.
To strengthen Department of Labor and Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission efforts to end wage
discrimination and expand opportunities in the
workplace for women, my Administration has included a
$14 million Equal Pay Initiative in my proposed
balanced budget for fiscal year 2000. This initiative
will provide more resources to identify wage
discrimination, to educate workers and employers about
their rights and responsibilities, and to bring more
women into better-paying jobs. We will also work with
the Congress to pass the proposed Paycheck Fairness
Act--legislation designed to strengthen laws that
prohibit wage discrimination.
As we observe National Equal Pay Day, let us reaffirm
our commitment to justice and equality in the
workplace, and let us build a Nation for the 21st
century where the talents, efforts, and hard work of
American women will be rightly appreciated and fairly
rewarded.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, WILLIAM J. CLINTON, President of the
United States of America, by virtue of the authority
vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United
States of America, do hereby proclaim April 8, 1999, as
National Equal Pay Day. I call upon Government
officials, law enforcement agencies, business leaders,
educators, and the American people to recognize the
full value of the skills and contributions of women in
the labor force. I urge all employers to review their
wage practices and to ensure that all their employees
are paid equitably for their work.
[[Page 17500]]
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
seventh day of April, in the year of our Lord nineteen
hundred and ninety-nine, and of the Independence of the
United States of America the two hundred and twenty-
third.
(Presidential Sig.)
[FR Doc. 99-9148
Filed 4-8-99; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3195-01-P
