According to the Institute for Women’s Policy Research, American women continue to earn approximately 80 cents on every dollar their male counterparts make. The reason for this disparity is often debated: Is it simply gender discrimination? Do fewer women negotiate their salaries? Whatever the explanation, Senate Democrats believe they have a solution: the Paycheck Fairness Act.
Congress is set to debate the Act this week, and the measure would compel employers to prove that pay disparities between male and female workers are related to job performance, not gender. The Act would also protect employees from retaliation if they share their salary information. An Institute for Women’s Policy Research study finds that 19 percent of workers in small firms (less than 100 people) and 23 percent of workers in large firms are contractually barred from discussing their wages, but a much higher percentage of workers report that their firms “discourage” discussion of salary. Irin Carmon, staff writer at Salon, argues that the best way to combat the gender pay gap is for workers to share their salary information.