Women's Equality in Pay - Term Paper Example

Within 10 years following that decision, equal rights were extended to individuals of all races and America changed for the better. However, more than a century after Brown v. Board of Education, the United States is still dealing with the effects of discriminatory practices, particularly in the world place. Equal Opportunity Employment legislation has paved the way for minorities to take up occupations that were, for centuries, closed off. Payments still exist in these positions, especially for women, who are still paid only 77 cents for every dollar that a man in the same position receives (Campbell, 1972).

Scientists, commentators, and economists are quick to offer a rationalization for this phenomenon; nevertheless, it is a discrimination that Americans have ignored for many years. Although the pay gap is slowly lessening, progress has been slow, even with federal legislation mandating equal pay regardless of gender. The early 20th century was a time of great strides for women, as they gained the right to suffrage, gained the right to serve in the military, and overcame the oppressive clothing norms of the past centuries.

In addition, that time saw great increases in the number of women going to work. During World War II, women were called on to fill the domestic roles of men outside of the home in order to maintain a working economy. This time was instrumental in creating a strong representation of women in the American workforce. A vast number of women are employed in order to support their family, which is a strong change from the two-parent, father-working model of mid-20th century America (Campbell, 1972).

Today, the primary breadwinner is not a man but a woman and a man, depending on the structure of a particular family. In order to address inequity in the pay of women versus men, the United States Congress passed the Equal Pay Act of 1963, which abolished and changed portions of the Fair Labor Standards Act. The intent of the legislation was to eliminate wage discrimination based on sex. The political context of this new law was President’s John F. Kennedy’s New Frontier, which sought to establish a broad base of social programs in order to help Americans succeed and reach new heights.

Congress acknowledged this view by denouncing pay discrimination as a burden on America’s economic resources and a practice that promotes unequal competition in the marketplace (Campbell, 1972). Indeed, the legislation helped decrease the wage disparity by nearly 20 cents per dollar. Nevertheless, the goals of the Equal Pay Act seem to have been too ambitious, reflected in the fact that the wage disparity has not been completely erased. The EPA does give women recourse in challenging the wages they are paid relative to men in court; if an employee can prove that wage discrimination has occurred, they can seek damages.

To resolve the remaining wage gap that exists, politicians attempted to pass the Paycheck Fairness Act in 2010. However, the bill failed when it reached the Senate. The PFA would have allowed employees to be able to disclose their wages to coworkers and required employers to justify wage differences in terms of business requirements. Although this legislation might have helped women access this information in a fair, open process and request the pay that they deserve based on the work they do, the legislation did not pass by a vote of 58 to 41.

Conservative groups opposed the measure on the basis that it would cause “government micromanaging of business” and that civil courts would be overburdened with trials based on PFA regulations (Sherk, 2010). It is possible that the Paycheck Fair