Economic Security for Women & Families
Women are the primary source of financial support for many families and bear significant caretaking responsibilities at home. At YWCA, we believe no one should have to choose between their livelihoods and their health, their family, or their safety. Yet as a result of their dual roles as caregivers and primary breadwinners, many women in the workforce, particularly women of color, are often forced to choose between their family’s economic security and their health when they or their loved ones need care. Moreover, women continue to face the economic barriers of pay inequity, sexual harassment, and discrimination. The COVID-19 pandemic revealed and exacerbated a depth of intersecting public health, economic, and racial justice crises that have long existed in our nation with disproportionate impacts on women, women of color, and their families. Unfortunately, failure by Congress to appropriately act and address these growing concerns have - once again - left women to endure. Simply put, the widespread and acute economic pain that women have experienced has not ended with the pandemic and action is required.
YWCA urges immediate Congressional action to:
• Pass the Paycheck Fairness Act to work towards equal pay for equal work and pass legislation prohibiting the use of salary history in job interviews and negotiations
• Enact nondiscrimination laws, such as the Equality Act
• Prohibit sexual harassment on the basis of gender and gender identity in the workplace
• Codify paid family and medical leave, paid sick, and safe leave laws that are inclusive of all families, with strong accountability and job protection requirements
