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Andrew Cuomo is Leading the Fight Against Gender Discrimination With Women's Equality Act
- Cristina Maza
- in
- Politics,
- Women's Issues
- 2 days ago
Andrew Cuomo is Leading the Fight Against Gender Discrimination With Womens Equality Act
Last week, New York governor Andrew Cuomo announced
that he is planning to lead the fight against gender discrimination,
starting in his own state. The governor’s third state address was both
progressive and bold, outlining a proposed ten point package of
legislation known as the Women’s Equality Act.
If passed into law, the act will guarantee equal pay for women, combat
sexual harassment in the workplace, protect women’s right to choose,
strengthen laws against human trafficking, and ensure that single
mothers have improved access to affordable housing, among others.
Women’s rights activists across New York State quickly expressed their support for the act.
If passed, the legislation will be a major stepping-stone in battling both conscious and unconscious gender discrimination in the workplace, and will help to make women safer from everything from domestic violence to sexual harassment.
While Cuomo’s newly proposed legislation is both admirable and necessary, women across the country are left wondering why such a bill hasn’t been proposed in their home state, and why the Obama administration has not been more aggressive in its fight against gender discrimination throughout the United States. While Obama has spoken out against the gender pay gap, nothing has been done to address the issue since the signing of the Lilly Ledbetter act in 2009. Despite the fact that the Ledbetter act makes it easier for women to bring discriminatory employers to court, the gender pay gap is still alive and well in the United States. In fact, recent reports claim that even women working in the White House are paid significantly less than their male colleagues, and are underrepresented in an administration that vocally supports gender equality.
Although it may seem difficult to believe in the 21st century, gender discrimination is still a huge problem in the United States. The Global Gender Gap Report, published each year following the World Economic Forum, rated the United States number 22 on its list for 2012. Countries such as the Philippines, Lesotho, Latvia and South Africa all rated higher than the United States in regards to gender equality. The pay gap between men and women in the U.S. is above the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development average, and various studies have demonstrated that women earn around 82% of what men earn in all occupations. Bookkeeping, accounting and auditing are the only exceptions to this rule. Additionally, the pay gap increases for women after motherhood.
While the causes that lead employers to offer female employees lower salaries will not be eradicated overnight, it seems clear that legislation is more than necessary if employers are to be held accountable. The Women’s Equality Act proposed by Governor Cuomo is inclusive enough to be just the legislation that women across the country can support. Other initiatives supported by Obama (such as the White House sponsored Council on Women and Girls) are a positive step forward, but New York is doubtlessly leading the way in the fight against gender discrimination.
Stop scratching on holidays
Off Track Betting in New York State has been racing into a crisis called shrinking revenue. Some people have spitballed a solution: Don’t close on holidays.
New York State Racing Law bars racing on Christmas, Easter and Palm Sunday, and the state has ruled OTBs can’t handle action on those days, even though they could easily broadcast races from out of state.
“You should be able to bet whenever you want,” said Jackson Leeds, a Nassau OTB employee who makes an occasional bet. He added some irrefutable logic: “How is the business going to make money if you’re not open to take people’s bets?”
Elias Tsekerides, president of the Federation of Hellenic Societies of Greater New York, said OTB is open on Greek Orthodox Easter and Palm Sunday.
“I don’t want discrimination,” Tsekerides said. “They close for the Catholics, but open for the Greek Orthodox? It’s either open for all or not open.”
OTB officials have said they lose millions by closing on Palm Sunday alone, with tracks such as Gulfstream, Santa Anita, Turf Paradise and Hawthorne running.
One option: OTBs could just stay open and face the consequences. New York City OTB did just that back in 2003. The handle was about $1.5 million – and OTB was fined $5,000.
Easy money.
If passed, the legislation will be a major stepping-stone in battling both conscious and unconscious gender discrimination in the workplace, and will help to make women safer from everything from domestic violence to sexual harassment.
While Cuomo’s newly proposed legislation is both admirable and necessary, women across the country are left wondering why such a bill hasn’t been proposed in their home state, and why the Obama administration has not been more aggressive in its fight against gender discrimination throughout the United States. While Obama has spoken out against the gender pay gap, nothing has been done to address the issue since the signing of the Lilly Ledbetter act in 2009. Despite the fact that the Ledbetter act makes it easier for women to bring discriminatory employers to court, the gender pay gap is still alive and well in the United States. In fact, recent reports claim that even women working in the White House are paid significantly less than their male colleagues, and are underrepresented in an administration that vocally supports gender equality.
Although it may seem difficult to believe in the 21st century, gender discrimination is still a huge problem in the United States. The Global Gender Gap Report, published each year following the World Economic Forum, rated the United States number 22 on its list for 2012. Countries such as the Philippines, Lesotho, Latvia and South Africa all rated higher than the United States in regards to gender equality. The pay gap between men and women in the U.S. is above the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development average, and various studies have demonstrated that women earn around 82% of what men earn in all occupations. Bookkeeping, accounting and auditing are the only exceptions to this rule. Additionally, the pay gap increases for women after motherhood.
While the causes that lead employers to offer female employees lower salaries will not be eradicated overnight, it seems clear that legislation is more than necessary if employers are to be held accountable. The Women’s Equality Act proposed by Governor Cuomo is inclusive enough to be just the legislation that women across the country can support. Other initiatives supported by Obama (such as the White House sponsored Council on Women and Girls) are a positive step forward, but New York is doubtlessly leading the way in the fight against gender discrimination.
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Stop scratching on holidays
Published: June 1, 2012
Off Track Betting in New York State has been racing into a crisis called shrinking revenue. Some people have spitballed a solution: Don’t close on holidays.
New York State Racing Law bars racing on Christmas, Easter and Palm Sunday, and the state has ruled OTBs can’t handle action on those days, even though they could easily broadcast races from out of state.
“You should be able to bet whenever you want,” said Jackson Leeds, a Nassau OTB employee who makes an occasional bet. He added some irrefutable logic: “How is the business going to make money if you’re not open to take people’s bets?”
Elias Tsekerides, president of the Federation of Hellenic Societies of Greater New York, said OTB is open on Greek Orthodox Easter and Palm Sunday.
“I don’t want discrimination,” Tsekerides said. “They close for the Catholics, but open for the Greek Orthodox? It’s either open for all or not open.”
OTB officials have said they lose millions by closing on Palm Sunday alone, with tracks such as Gulfstream, Santa Anita, Turf Paradise and Hawthorne running.
One option: OTBs could just stay open and face the consequences. New York City OTB did just that back in 2003. The handle was about $1.5 million – and OTB was fined $5,000.
Easy money.
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