H.Con.Res. 81

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 81 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. CON. RES. 81

Recognizing the significance of equal pay and the disparity between 
wages paid to men and women.

_______________________________________________________________________

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

March 26, 2026

Ms. Lois Frankel of Florida (for herself, Ms. DeLauro, Ms. Leger 
Fernandez, Ms. Williams of Georgia, Mr. Amo, Ms. Ansari, Ms. Barragan, 
Mr. Bell, Mr. Beyer, Mr. Bishop, Ms. Bonamici, Mr. Boyle of 
Pennsylvania, Ms. Brown, Ms. Brownley, Ms. Budzinski, Ms. Bynum, Mr. 
Carbajal, Mr. Carson, Ms. Castor of Florida, Mr. Castro of Texas, Mrs. 
Cherfilus-McCormick, Ms. Chu, Mr. Cleaver, Mr. Correa, Mr. Costa, Ms. 
Craig, Ms. Crockett, Mr. Davis of Illinois, Ms. Dean of Pennsylvania, 
Ms. DeGette, Ms. DelBene, Mr. DeSaulnier, Ms. Dexter, Mrs. Dingell, Mr. 
Doggett, Ms. Elfreth, Mr. Evans of Pennsylvania, Mrs. Foushee, Ms. 
Friedman, Mr. Frost, Ms. Garcia of Texas, Mr. Goldman of New York, Mr. 
Gomez, Ms. Goodlander, Mr. Green of Texas, Mrs. Grijalva, Mrs. Hayes, 
Mr. Hoyer, Mr. Huffman, Mr. Ivey, Mr. Jackson of Illinois, Ms. Jacobs, 
Ms. Jayapal, Mr. Johnson of Georgia, Ms. Johnson of Texas, Ms. 
Kamlager-Dove, Mr. Keating, Ms. Kelly of Illinois, Mr. Kennedy of New 
York, Mr. Krishnamoorthi, Mr. Landsman, Mr. Larsen of Washington, Mr. 
Larson of Connecticut, Mr. Latimer, Ms. Lee of Pennsylvania, Ms. Lee of 
Nevada, Mr. Lynch, Mr. Magaziner, Mr. Mannion, Ms. Matsui, Mrs. McClain 
Delaney, Ms. McClellan, Ms. McCollum, Mr. McGovern, Mrs. McIver, Mr. 
Meeks, Mr. Menefee, Mr. Menendez, Ms. Meng, Mr. Min, Ms. Moore of 
Wisconsin, Mr. Morelle, Ms. Morrison, Mr. Moskowitz, Mr. Moulton, Mr. 
Mrvan, Mr. Mullin, Mr. Nadler, Mr. Neal, Ms. Norton, Mr. Olszewski, Ms. 
Omar, Mr. Pallone, Mr. Panetta, Ms. Pelosi, Mr. Peters, Ms. Pettersen, 
Ms. Pingree, Mr. Pocan, Ms. Pou, Mr. Quigley, Mrs. Ramirez, Mr. Raskin, 
Mr. Riley of New York, Ms. Rivas, Ms. Ross, Mr. Ruiz, Ms. Salinas, Ms. 
Scanlon, Ms. Schakowsky, Mr. Schneider, Ms. Scholten, Mr. Scott of 
Virginia, Ms. Simon, Mr. Smith of Washington, Mr. Soto, Ms. Stansbury, 
Mr. Stanton, Ms. Stevens, Ms. Strickland, Mr. Swalwell, Mrs. Sykes, Mr. 
Takano, Mr. Thanedar, Mr. Thompson of California, Ms. Titus, Ms. Tlaib, 
Ms. Tokuda, Mr. Tonko, Mrs. Torres of California, Mr. Torres of New 
York, Mr. Vargas, Ms. Velazquez, Mr. Walkinshaw, Ms. Wasserman Schultz, 
Ms. Wilson of Florida, Ms. Adams, Mr. Mfume, Ms. Hoyle of Oregon, Ms. 
Sanchez, and Mr. Subramanyam) submitted the following concurrent 
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Education and 
Workforce

_______________________________________________________________________

CONCURRENT RESOLUTION

Recognizing the significance of equal pay and the disparity between 
wages paid to men and women.

Whereas section 6(d) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 206(d)) 
prohibits discrimination in compensation for equal work on the basis of 
sex;
Whereas title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e et seq.) 
prohibits discrimination in compensation because of race, color, 
religion, national origin, or sex;
Whereas more than 6 decades after the passage of the Equal Pay Act of 1963 (29 
U.S.C. 206 note), Census Bureau data show that women working full-time, 
year-round are paid an average of 81 cents for every dollar paid to all 
men, while women overall, including part-time and seasonal workers, are 
paid just 76 cents for every dollar paid to men, Latinas working full-
time, year-round are paid 58 cents, American Indian and Alaska Native 
women are paid 58 cents, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander women are 
paid 67 cents, African-American women are paid 65 cents, White, non-
Hispanic women are paid 77 cents, and Asian-American women are paid 96 
cents, for every dollar paid to White, non-Hispanic men;
Whereas March 26, 2026, is Equal Pay Day, marking the day that symbolizes how 
long into 2026 women must work to make what men were paid in 2025;
Whereas April 9, 2026, is observed as Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and 
Pacific Islander Women's Equal Pay Day; June 17, 2026, is observed as 
LGBTQ+ Equal Pay Awareness Day; July 21, 2026, is observed as Black 
Women's Equal Pay Day; September 15, 2626 is observed as Native Hawaiian 
Pacific Islander Women's Equal Pay Day; October 8, 2026, is observed as 
Latinas' Equal Pay Day; October 20, 2026, is observed as Disabled 
Women's Equal Pay Day; and November 19, 2026, is observed as Native 
Women's Equal Pay Day;
Whereas LGBTQ+ women may face further pay disparities;
Whereas the gender wage gap has now grown for the second year in a row;
Whereas if current trends continue, Asian women are projected to close the 
gender pay gap for all workers, including part-time, full-time, and 
seasonal workers, in 19 years, White women in 50 years, Black women in 
199 years, and Latinas in 153 years;
Whereas the disparity in median annual earnings for women and men working full-
time, year-round is $13,570, which can add up to nearly $542,800 over a 
career;
Whereas women's median earnings are less than men's at every level of academic 
achievement, with women with less than a high school diploma being paid 
78 percent of men's earnings, and women with a professional degree being 
paid 87 percent of men's earnings at the same level of education;
Whereas women are often paid less than men with lower levels of education, with 
women with associate's degrees paid less than men with a high school 
diploma, women with master's degrees paid less than men with bachelor's 
degrees, and women with doctorate degrees paid less than men with 
master's degrees;
Whereas in the United States, mothers working full-time and all year typically 
are paid 74 cents for every dollar paid to fathers, and disabled women 
working full-time and all year typically are paid 68 cents for every 
dollar paid to non-disabled men.
Whereas the gender wage gap collectively costs women employed full-time and all 
year in the United States more than $1,182,864,800,000 in annual lost 
wages, so that families have less money to spend on goods and services 
that help drive economic growth;
Whereas if the annual gender wage gap were eliminated for just 1 year, on 
average, a working woman in the United States would have enough money 
for approximately 13 months of childcare, nearly 10 additional months of 
rent, more than 7 additional months of mortgage payments, almost 3 
semesters of tuition and fees for a 4-year public university or the full 
cost of tuition and fees for attending a 2-year college, 8 additional 
months of premiums for employer-based health insurance, more than 17 
months of food, 62 percent of the maximum annual individual 401(k) 
contribution, or enough money to pay off student loan debt in less than 
3 years;
Whereas women hold nearly two-thirds of the Nation's outstanding student loan 
debt, totaling over $929,000,000,000, and are less likely to be able to 
pay off their student loan debt promptly due to wage disparities;
Whereas the wage gap impacts women's ability to save for retirement and women's 
total Social Security and pension benefits, and older women are more 
likely than men to live in poverty;
Whereas sex-based wage differentials reduce family incomes and contribute to the 
higher poverty rates among women and their families;
Whereas a wage gap exists in nearly every occupational field, but opening 
traditionally male-dominated jobs to women and reducing occupational 
segregation by sex increases earnings for women;
Whereas nearly two-thirds of workers paid the minimum wage or less are women, 
and the concentration of women in low-wage jobs is a significant 
contributor to the wage gap;
Whereas the gender wage gap between union women and men is about three-quarters 
the size of the wage gap between nonunion women and men, and women union 
members typically are paid $241 more per week than women who are not 
represented by unions;
Whereas two-thirds of private sector workers report that employers either 
prohibit or discourage them from discussing their pay, which can keep 
the existence of pay discrimination hidden and prevent remedying that 
discrimination;
Whereas the lack of family friendly policies, such as access to affordable, 
quality childcare, paid family and medical leave, paid sick days, and 
fair and predictable work schedules, forces many caregivers to choose 
between providing for their families financially and ensuring their 
loved ones receive quality care, and contributes to the wage gap;
Whereas at least 1 in 3 women have experienced sexual harassment during their 
careers, and an estimated 87 to 94 percent of those who experience 
sexual harassment never file a formal complaint;
Whereas workplace harassment forces many women to leave their occupation or 
industry, or pass up opportunities for advancement, and this contributes 
to the gender wage gap;
Whereas equal pay strengthens the economic security of families and enhances 
retirement savings;
Whereas when women are paid fairly, families are stronger, businesses prosper, 
and American values and the economy are strengthened; and
Whereas numerous national organizations have designated Thursday, March 26, 
2026, as ``Equal Pay Day'' to represent the additional time that women 
must work to compensate for the on average lower wages paid to women 
working full-time, year-round last year: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), 
That Congress--
(1) recognizes the disparity between wages paid to women 
and men and its impact on women, families, and the Nation; and
(2) reaffirms its commitment to supporting equal pay and to 
narrowing the gender wage gap.
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