Attorney General Mark Herring joined a nationwide coalition of state attorneys general and government agencies in fighting for equal pay by filing an amicus brief in a lawsuit that would maintain data collection practices that are critical in combating pay discrimination.
In 2017, the Trump Administration announced that they would stop collecting pay data from certain private employers that would be used as part of the effort to address the wage gap between men and women and people of different races and ethnicities. In an amicus brief in National Women’s Law Center, et al. v. Office of Management and Budget, et al., Attorney General Herring and his colleagues explain how collecting that information is critical to tackling pay discrimination.
“It is inexcusable that such large gender and racial pay disparities continue to exist,” said Herring. “Good data is key to identifying problems and crafting solutions, but instead of embracing the data, the Trump Administration is trying to stifle it. I am proud to stand with my colleagues and continue the fight for equal pay.”
Inequality in earnings between women and men and people of different races and ethnicities has been a widespread, persistent flaw of the American labor market. Although the gender pay gap has been slowly decreasing, in 2018 women still only earned approximately 85 percent of what men earned. Over the last 30 years, Latinos and African-Americans have been estimated to earn around 70 percent of what white men earned over the same period. For women of color, the pay gap has been consistently worse. For instance, in 2015, Latinas earned approximately 58 percent of what white men earned.
Federal law directs the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) to work with Fair Employment Practices Agencies (FEPA) to investigate and resolve claims of employment discrimination. The EEOC relies on pay data to inform its investigation and civil rights enforcement efforts, publish reports on pay disparities to help close the wage gap, and identify trends that help employers better evaluate their pay policies and practices to ensure their compliance with the law. As a result, the agencies’ efforts to address pay discrimination are directly affected by the Trump Administration’s decision to halt the collection of crucial employment data.
If you believe you have been the subject of pay discrimination in Virginia you can file a complaint with Attorney General Herring’s Division of Human Rights:
- (804) 225-2292
- [email protected]
In filing the amicus brief, Herring joins the attorneys general of California, Delaware, Illinois, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Washington, and the District of Columbia. The coalition also includes state civil rights agencies including California Department of Fair Employment and Housing, Connecticut Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities, Illinois Department of Human Rights, Maine Human Rights Commission, Maryland Commission on Civil Rights, Minnesota Department of Human Rights, Nevada Equal Rights Commission, Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries, Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission, Rhode Island Commission for Human Rights, and Washington State Human Rights Commission. Additionally, the coalition includes local civil rights agencies including the Baltimore Office of Civil Rights and Wage Enforcement, New York City Commission on Human Rights, and Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations.
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