Assemblymember Harry B. Bronson (D-Rochester/Chili/Henrietta) announced the Assembly passed the Women’s Equality Act that he sponsored to ensure equal pay, increase protections for victims of domestic violence and end discrimination (A.8070). Assemblymember Bronson is urging the Senate to take up this legislation.

“I have dedicated my life to fighting for justice to ensure fairness for all people, regardless of age, race, gender, disability, gender expression and identity or sexual orientation,” said Assemblymember Bronson. “Today, we passed historic legislation that provides much needed and long-overdue equality for women in New York. As a sponsor of this legislation, I am proud to have stood with the women in the Assembly and all my colleagues who have moved this important legislation for a full vote.”

"It is my hope that the Senate brings this full 10 point omnibus bill to the floor for a vote,” said Assemblymember Bronson. “As Susan B. Anthony once said, ‘Failure is impossible.’ We will not stop until the Senate passes this legislation; the struggle is not lost and the fight will go on.”

The specific provisions of the bill address the following areas:

Achieving pay equity

This legislation requires employers to make pay decisions based on legitimate reasons, taking gender out of the equation. Currently, women in New York make 84 cents for every dollar men earn. The discrepancy is even worse for minority women, with African American women being paid 64 cents and Latinas being paid just 55 cents for every dollar paid to white, non-Hispanic men nationally.¹

“There is no reason that women should continue to earn less than men, just because they are women,” said Assemblymember Bronson. “Fairness demands that people be paid according to their skill and work ethic, not gender.”

Protect a woman’s right to make decisions about her own body

New York State’s current law to protect women’s freedom of choice is outdated. This legislation codifies existing federal law to protect a woman’s right to obtain an abortion prior to 24 weeks, or when necessary to protect her life or health.

“For women to have true equality, its imperative that women have reproductive rights,” said Assemblymember Bronson. “Today was a proud moment in New York’s history in the fight for real equality for women.”

Protecting women as victims

This legislation increases protections for women and strengthens New York’s human trafficking laws by:

• banning sexual harassment in every workplace;
• creating a pilot program to allow domestic violence victims to seek temporary orders of protection through electronic means rather than appear in person;
• increasing the penalties for sex and labor trafficking; and
• increasing penalties for promoting and patronizing prostitution.

“The sexual exploitation or abuse of women is unacceptable and morally inexcusable,” said Assemblymember Bronson. “Women should not have to worry about feeling unsafe in the workplace or face additional obstacles when they seek to protect themselves from their abusers.”

Ending discrimination

This bill addresses the need to protect women from various types of discrimination that have become far too prevalent by:

• prohibiting landlords from discriminating against victims of domestic violence;
• prohibiting employers from denying work or promotions to employees simply because they have children;
• requiring employers to provide reasonable accommodations for pregnant employees;
• enabling victims to be compensated for their legal costs in employment or credit discrimination cases based on gender, in cases where they prevail; and
• creating a task force to study the impact of source of income on access to housing.

“I have made the fight to end discrimination of any kind my lifelong mission,” said Assemblymember Bronson. “No one should be discriminated against for any reason, and especially not because they have been the victim of domestic violence, are pregnant or already have children. With the passage of this legislation we’ll make certain women who find themselves in these situations are protected.”

The Women’s Equality Act has the support of Alternatives for Battered Women in Rochester, Susan B. Anthony House, NARAL Pro-Choice New York, Family Planning Advocates, Planned Parenthood, New York Civil Liberties Union, Center for the Women of NY, Center for Reproductive Rights and New York State AFL-CIO.

1. www.nationalpartnership.org/site/DocServer/Wage_Gap_ny.pdf