Senator Joe Robach Sponsors Women’s Workforce Training Bill
On June 20th, Joe Robach and the New York State Senate passed legislation to promote and expand workforce training programs for women. The bill (S.6429A), sponsored by Senator Joe Robach of Rochester, works to narrow the gender wage gap by providing women seeking employment with the information and resources to pursue higher paying jobs. Through Senator Robach’s bill, women would be able to access counseling, skills development, and training provided by workforce training programs, as well as referrals to employers offering higher earning jobs.
Explaining the necessity of his legislation, Senator Joe Robach said, “Women are increasingly responsible for the economic security of their families, yet working women earn 80 percent of what men earn and jobs traditionally held by women pay less than jobs that predominantly employ men. Expanding the state’s workforce training, counseling and referral efforts to help women get higher paying jobs will help women and their families.”
Senator Joe Robach’s legislation confronts the true issue behind the disparity between the earnings of men and women in the United States. While data provided by the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that working women earn 81 cents for every dollar working men earn, this figure is only a comparison of the median female wage to the median male wage in the country. The truth is, the wage gap between men and women performing the same job is significantly narrower. The real issue, then, is that jobs traditionally held by women pay less than jobs that predominantly employ men.
Senator Robach’s legislation deals with this problem by helping women pursue higher paying jobs. “This legislation would provide greater assistance for women to seek jobs in areas that are dominated by men but could provide opportunities for women,” said the Senator. “By doing so, these training programs would help narrow the gender wage gap.”
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