State lawmakers are poised to adopt a compromise bill that aims to reduce the pay gap between women and men.
With estimates that female workers are paid 82 percent of what their male counterparts earn for comparable work in Massachusetts, the pay equity legislation is expected to be voted on Saturday by the House and Senate and then sent to Gov. Charlie Baker for his signature.
“I am 100 percent confident he will sign it,” state Rep. Ellen Story, D-Amherst, said Friday. “How could he not?”
Story said similar legislation has been filed annually since 1998 and that the federal government has had a law on the books relating to pay equity since 1945.
Two major elements make up the proposed law, Story said. First, women will be able to find out if their salaries are lower than those of men doing comparable work. They then can go to a supervisor and human resources to have this matter addressed.
“If they don’t find a sympathetic ear, they can file a lawsuit, which is new,” Story said.
Second, employers cannot ask women about their salary history until after a job and salary offers are made.
As written, the legislation strengthens the current law by defining the term “comparable work” within the Massachusetts Equal Pay Act to ensure it includes comparable pay.
Variations may continue to exist if the difference in pay is based on seniority, a bona fide merit system or a system that measures earnings based on production. In addition, differences could also be based on geographic location or education, training or experience related to the job.
By not allowing employers during the hiring process to ask about salary history, the hope is that what the Legislature sees as a self-perpetuating cycle of wage disparity will end. Massachusetts would be the first state in the nation to adopt such a provision.
The League of Women Voters of Massachusetts and its Amherst chapter have both strongly supported legislation to address and remove discrimination against women in areas of education, housing and employment, Marcie Sclove, of the Amherst chapter, said in an email.
According to statistics provided by the Institute for Women’s Policy Research, Massachusetts is among the top states for female workers when it comes to earnings, labor force participation and the percentage of women in leadership and professional positions, but ranks only 22nd among states in wage gap between men and women. This wage gap is even more pronounced among low-income and immigrant workers, according to the institute’s data.
“The League of Women Voters of Massachusetts and Amherst strongly supports the passage of legislation this session to address the issue of pay inequality for all women,” Sclove said.
Senate President Stanley Rosenberg, D-Amherst, issued a statement thanking colleagues for their work on the legislation.
“This bill will protect women from discrimination in the workplace and close the gender pay gap,” Rosenberg said.
Similarly, House Speaker Robert DeLeo, D-Winthrop, said in a statement that he is proud to come up with a workable solution and thanked legislators who have been advocates for decades.
“Your work will shape a better and more just future for women in the Commonwealth,” DeLeo said.
Meanwhile, the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, filed by Story, is also moving toward adoption in an economic development bill.
Rosenberg said in a statement that protecting expectant mothers “is a no-brainer.”
“With less than two weeks left in the legislative session, the Senate felt it was important to include it in the economic development bill as part of the bill’s focus on workforce development and training,” Rosenberg said.
Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.
