* Warning: This is an unofficial, introductory copy of the bill.
The official copy considered by the City Council is the first reader copy.
Introductory*
City of Baltimore
Council Bill R
(Resolution)
Introduced by: Councilmember Sneed
A Resolution Entitled
A Council Resolution concerning
title
Investigative Hearing - Equal Pay for Women
For the purpose of reaffirming Baltimore City’s commitment to equal treatment of any and all employees, and particularly equal treatment of women in the workplace; calling for the City to take concrete steps to accelerate the closing of the pay gap between men and women to empower women and reduce poverty; and requesting that the Department of Finance complete a management research project on the possibility of pay disparity between men and women on the City’s payroll so that City officials can make informed decisions about what steps would be most effective in eliminating any existing gaps.
body
Recitals
One of the ongoing civil rights issues is the pay disparity between men and women. This gap is further stratified along racial lines. Although the gap has been slowly narrowing over time, recent studies show that on its current path true pay equity would not arrive until 2059.
Repeated studies have shown that women in Baltimore City, and the country at large, make approximately 80 cents or less for every dollar a man earned, and this gap is wider for women of color. This has very real costs for women, families, and society at large. Over her entire career, a woman can expect to earn as much as $2 million less than a man with a similar level of education. As a result, roughly a quarter of female headed households in Maryland live below the poverty line, 2.5 times the rate for the state’s population as a whole. And a recent study by the McKinsey Global Institute found that the United States could add $4.3 trillion to the economy by achieving pay equity by 2025; for Maryland, achieving pay equity would grow the economy by more than 10%.
The impacts of the pay gap fall disproportionally on cities like Baltimore, making it essential that the City work to reduce the gap both in the public and private sectors. The best way to improve equity in the workforce is to lead by example, the City must study its own practices in order to further its commitment to addressing this inequity.
With recent events, it has become imperative that the City of Baltimore take proactive action on this front. The City Council and Mayor cannot act to solve the issue of pay disparity in government without an understanding of the issue as it exists. Attaining that understanding means taking a hard look at how men, women, and people of color in the City’s workforce are actually paid.
Now, therefore, be it resolved by the City Council of Baltimore, That the Council reaffirms Baltimore City’s commitment to equal treatment of any and all employees, and particularly equal treatment of women in the workplace; calls for the City to take concrete steps to accelerate the closing of the pay gap between men and women to empower women and reduce poverty; and requests that the Department of Finance complete a management research project on the possibility of pay disparity between men and women on the City’s payroll so that City officials can make informed decisions about what steps would be most effective in eliminating any existing gaps.
And be it further resolved, That a copy of this Resolution be sent to the Mayor, the Director of Finance, the Chief of the Finance Department’s Bureau of Budget and Management Research, the Director of Human Resources, and the Mayor’s Legislative Liaison to the City Council.