Washington: US Republican legislators blocked a bill that would have made it easier for women to sue their organisations against payment inequality.
With politicians voting along exact party lines on Wednesday, the Paycheque Fairness Act introduced by Democrats fell eight votes shy of the 60 necessary to make it to the senate floor for debate, Al Jazeera reported.
Barbara Mikulski, the longest-serving woman senator and a supporter of the bill, said after the vote, “It’s a very sad day here in the United States senate, but it’s a sadder day every day when paycheck day comes and women continue to make less than men.”
The bill had the support of the White House, which Democrats said would have strengthened laws against wage discrimination by barring companies from retaliating against employees who voluntarily share pay data with colleagues, and would have made it easier for women to file pay discrimination lawsuits.
“It is incredibly disappointing that in this make-or-break moment for the middle class, senate Republicans put partisan politics ahead of American women and their families,” Barack Obama, US president, said in a statement.
“Despite the progress that has been made over the years, women continue to earn substantially less than men for performing the same work.
“My administration will continue to fight for a woman’s right for equal pay for equal work, as we rebuild our economy so that hard work pays off, responsibility is rewarded and every American gets a fair shot to succeed.”
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