Maine lawmakers have approved a bill that supporters say will help address the longstanding pay inequity between men and women.
The legislation, enacted on national Equal Pay Day, prohibits employers from asking about or otherwise seeking a job applicant’s prior wage or salary information until after an offer of employment has been made. Supporters say the measure will encourage employers to base salaries on market factors and on the skills, education and experience of the applicant, which will promote fair wages.
“The effect of this consistent pay gap has long-lasting implications. Women have a much higher chance of living in poverty. As single heads of households, nearly 40 percent of Maine women are raising their kids in poverty,” says Sen. Cathy Breen, a Democrat from Falmouth who sponsored the bill.
According to the bill’s supporters, the average woman in America has to work 15 months to earn what the average man earns in a year.
“We’re recognizing Equal Pay Day today, on the day that most women catch up with what men made in the previous year. Black women won’t catch up until Aug. 22. Native American women wont catch up until Sept. 23,” says Democratic state Sen. Shenna Bellows of Manchester.
Originally published April 2, 2019 at 4:19 p.m. ET.
