joining me now is lilly ledbetter. it is an honor and pleasure to see you today.e president is going to be giving a raise -- a pay increase to future federal contractors, the speaker of the house is down playing it. you wrote something encouraging the president to do more, to use executive action to raise wages. is this enough? >> it's not enough. it's a start, but i really wish he'd gone further and protected those workers from retaliation if they discuss their pay and other aspects of the federal work force because that's one of the problems that workers have. they can't talk about their wages or they can't find out exactly how people are paid. if they do, even if they're in a position they can, oftentimes they're fired or let go or they lose their jobs simply because the employer figures that they're interested in what they're making. we should be. whatever you earn goes on to the rest of your life. your requiremetirement is built social security, 401ks. you're talking about american families. this is not just a women's issue or a man's issue. it's not republic

that's what happened to lilly ledbetter. she worked her whole career, didn't realize she was being penalized, and when she tried to be compensated for it they said the statute of limitations had passed. what's still difficult, you're not proteched if you ask a male colleague, how much do you get paid? you can be fired for asking that question. what the fair pay bill that barbara mikulski is we incentivize employers to tell what you pay employees, you can't be penalized for asking about a salary, incentivizes people to publish what different industries are paying their workers so that you actually can figure out am i being paid fairly. it's illegal to be -- it's not illegal to be d -- it's already -- it's focused on transparency. >> i want to ask you about the chatchter in the report that notes that even the women in higher ed tend to clust for the majors that lead toward lower paying jobs. the helping professions in many cases. this pipeline starts early. there's a report that of the approximately 30,000 high school students

so this first bill that i signed is called the lilly ledbetter fair pay act. lly was in my speech last night, and it's a law to help a woman's right to fair pay, but at a time when women make up about half of the workforce, but still make 77 cents for every zlar a man earns, we have to give women the tools they need for equal pay. women deserve equal pay for equal work. if they are having a baby, they shouldn't have to sacrifice their job. a mom deserves a day off to care for a sick child or a sick parent. and a father does, too. as i said last night, we've got to get rid of some of these workplace policies that long in a "madmen" episode, belong in the '50s. we have to give women opportunity she deserves, because when women succeed, america succeeds. now, women happen to hold a majority of lower-wage jobs in america, but they are not the only ones who are stifled when wages aren't going up. you know, as americans we understand some people are going to earn more than other people, and we don't resent those who because they work hard, because they come up with a

so this first bill that i signed was called the lilly ledbetter fair pay act. at my speech last night, and it's a law to help protect a woman's right to fair pay, but at a time when women make about -- make up about half of the work force but still make 77 cents for every dollar a man earns, we have to finish the job and give women the tools they need to fight for equal pay. women deserve equal pay for equal work. they deserve -- if they're having a baby, they shouldn't have to sacrifice their job. a mom deserves a day off to care for a sick child or parent. a father does, too. as i said last night, we have to get rid of some of these workplace policies that belong in a "mad men" episode back in the '50s. we have to give every woman the tupt she deserves, because when women succeeds, america succeeds. now, women happen to hold a majority of lower wage jobs in america. they're not the only ones who are stifled when wages aren't going up. you know, as americans we understand some people are going to earn more than other people. we don't resent those who because th

the housing getting bills through and working with the president at that time to get lilly ledbetterand other good legislation. thank goodness we had some good women in the senate and in the house because we were able to get some of the funding that we needed at a time when the other side was saying oh no, the government is too big and it's outrageous when the unemployment rate at that time was 10% and maybe 16 to 20% for people of color, in communities around the country. >> i think we want to leave this panel with a note of optimism, and so if i could ask each of you and maybe sandra you want to start. what is on the horizon and can give us some reason to be happy about the progress we have made and are about to make? >> well i will start by addressing the point that senators solis was raising why are we seeing more women stepping forward in office to leadership? sometimes i worry that it's because we spend a lot of time talking about the barriers. it's good to knowledge the barriers and talk about the challenges and how we work on them but we have to not get stuck there. as indivi

the very first piece of legislation signed into law by president obama was the lilly ledbetter fair payther efforts to reduce the wage gap have stalled in the u.s. congress. last year the paycheck fairness act was blocked by house republicans with every single member of the gop voting against legislation to close loopholes in the equal pay act and require employers to prove that pay disparities were related to job performance. at the time of the vote, representative virginia foxx of north carolina said the bill was a liberal plot to perpetuate the narrative that republicans are anti-woman. to mr. o'reilly and republican legislators, the campaign to ensure women receive the same pay as men is not a liberal plot. it's actually just the right thing to do. >>> after the break, there are positive signs today that immigration reform might happen. the key word being "might." what ortho who is standing in the way? i'll ask congressman joaquin castro and his twin brother julian castro. double castros! a can of del monte green beans? ♪ ♪ if i was a flower growing wild and free ♪ ♪ all i'd want is

provide those opportunities to women and girls, just think about the very first bill he signed was lilly ledbettere still only earning 77 cents on the dollar. we have to close that gap. maria is right, women right now make up half of the workforce. two thirds of families were the sole bread earner or co-bread earner, the contribution to our economy is more important than ever. we need a 21st century workplace that recognizes that value and contribution they can make. that's wihy the president calle for a summit later this spring focusing on working families. what can we do to create an environment where women thrive and grow? later this week the president invited literally 60 plus university and college presidents to come to washington to focus on how can we get disadvantaged folks into college, applying to college, succeeding in college and graduating? because we know that's the gate way to economic security as well. there are lots of things we can do that don't necessarily require congress. some do. we know the president has called for the extension of the unemployment insurance, which is an imp

that's what happened to lilly ledbetter. she worked her whole career, didn't realize she was being penalized, and when she tried to be compensated for it they said the statute of limitations had passed. what's still difficult, you're not proteched if you ask a male colleague, how much do you get paid? you can be fired for asking that question. what the fair pay bill that barbara mikulski is we incentivize employers to tell what you pay employees, you can't be penalized for asking about a salary, incentivizes people to publish what different industries are paying their workers so that you actually can figure out am i being paid fairly. it's illegal to be -- it's not illegal to be d -- it's already it's focused on transparency. >> i want to ask you about the chatchter in the report that notes that even the women in higher ed tend to clust for the majors that lead toward lower paying jobs. the helping professions in many cases. this pipeline starts early. there's a report that of the approximately 30,000 high school students wh

i rise today to mark the fifth anniversary of the lilly ledbetter fair pay act, a critical law that championsqual pay for equal work. ms. bust others: -- mrs. bustos: women still only earn 77 cents to the dollar that a man makes for the exact same work. this gap results in more than $11,000 less that a woman makes every year. that means women are essentially working 84 days for free while a man takes home a paycheck. in the district of illinois that i serve, women make even less than that. they make approximately 70 cents on the dollar. keep in mind that number is figured for the same work that would just -- but with just less income. equal pay is not simply a women's issue. it's an issue from the filled class and it is -- middle class. when women bring home more they're able to provide better for their families. because equal pay for equal work would affect my region in the state of illinois and across the country, it's time that congress pass the paycheck fairness act. thank you, mr. speaker. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady's time has expired. for what purpose does the