Dear Lucas,
When I first went to work on the overnight shift of a Goodyear Tire and Rubber plant thirty years ago, I could never have dreamed how much that choice would affect the course of my life.
I needed that Goodyear job to support my family. I believed that if I worked as hard as my co-workers and performed well, I would be compensated for my work just as they were.
However, I learned that was not the case. Thanks to a tip from a co-worker, I came to know that my salary was substantially less than that of men doing the same job. Despite receiving a Top Performance award, I was paid less, my raises had been smaller, and my future opportunities more limited than that of men doing the exact same job.
Click here to join me for breakfast on May 23rd and to hear more about gender inequity in America.
While I was working at Goodyear in Alabama, a vibrant young mother and member of the New York City Council was doing what many said was flat out impossible, when she beat an entrenched Republican Congressman and took a seat in the US House. Little did I know that impressive and tenacious woman, Carolyn Maloney, would one day be a co-sponsor of a historic bill named after me.
Click here to join me for breakfast on May 23rd and hear more about Carolyn's heroic journey.
In 1998, I chose to fight the injustice of unequal pay in a case that would eventually go all the way to the US Supreme Court. At that point, Carolyn had already established herself as a national leader in the struggle for equality. Carolyn knew that the injustices suffered in my case were not mine alone, but were being experienced by millions of women throughout the nation. That's why she co-sponsored the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act and never gave up until it was passed and became the very first piece of legislation that President Obama signed into law.
Click here to join me for breakfast on May 23rd and hear more about our fight for women's rights in Congress.