Dear Senator Gillibrand:

Please accept the support of New York State Women, Inc. ,collectively and individually, for your efforts to eliminate the discriminatory practice of pay inequity for women.  We offer the following:

New York State Women, Inc. stands firmly in support of the Paycheck Fairness Act co-sponsored and supported by you and many others in Congress.  Enough is enough with the discrimination that women have withstood on the issue of Pay Equity.  There is no rational explanation for the length of time it has taken us to achieve this goal.  The mission of NYSWI is “to build powerful women personally, professionally and politically” through advocacy and education.  Our vision is “to make a difference in the lives of working women.”  Our Legislative Platform reflects the many areas of equitable demands and we are supportive of any issue that will positively impact the lives of women in New York and all of America.  There is no justification for women to be treated as second-class citizens.  Every woman who enters and maintains a role in our country’s workforce has the right to expect equal pay for the same work done by our male counterparts.  We should no longer tolerate excuses that defy logic.  Pay Equity is our right, not a privilege.  We ask no more – we ask no less.  We have carried “red” purses as a reminder of this inequitable practice and treatment for too long.  We need to insure that public, private, union and government jobs pay equally for the same job performed by women and men.  There is much guilt to go around when we look for reasons for this inequitable practice of pay inequity. 

You have the absolute support of New York State Women, Inc. on this issue.  Each of our members will be encouraged to sign your petition for a cause that impacts all women - young and mature, single, married, as well as our daughters and granddaughters and all women of the future.

Thank you and your congressional colleagues for continuing to fight this discriminatory practice on a national level.  We need to insure that women in every state of our great country have the necessary recourse to fight this blatant form of discrimination.  We need to eliminate the national disgrace of gender driven pay inequity and the need for another Equal Pay Day.

Pat Hendrickson
President
NYSWI