Women's Issues

EQUAL PAY, EQUAL RIGHTS, REPRODUCTIVE FREEDOM

"I am proud to be a strong supporter of women's issues in the Senate. As a father of two daughters, I care about the concerns of Wisconsin women. I believe in the principle of gender equality, and have taken the lead in addressing issues affecting women's health and women in the workplace.

One area where I have taken action is unfair wage disparities between men and women. Equal pay for equal work is the law of the land, but that promise remains unfulfilled for many. Although some progress has been made in narrowing the gender wage-gap since Congress enacted the Equal Pay Act in 1963, unfair wage disparities continue to be a problem. Wage discrimination is costing families thousands of dollars each year. I am proud to support legislative efforts to correct this discrepancy.

I support the Supreme Court's decision in Roe v. Wade to uphold a woman's right to reproductive freedom, and I believe that abortions should be rare, legal, and safe. Please see my statement on reproductive freedom at the bottom of this page for more of my perspective on this issue.

We must also consider the challenges facing women abroad. Women in the developing world are more likely to live in poverty, suffer from malnutrition, and lack access to education. Despite the expansion of women's health care research and practices in the last two decades, women still have unequal access to these services."

ACHIEVEMENTS

Supporting the Family and Medical Leave Act: Senator Feingold fought for and helped pass the Family and Medical Leave Act. Two-thirds of all women with children work full-time. One quarter of all children in the United States live with single parents. Millions of three generation households now care for elderly parents and almost one million women care for their parents and their children while working full-time. For these families, the Family and Medical Leave Act provides short-term job security in times of family or medical emergencies. If a person needs time off to care for a new child or to care for a sick child, spouse, or elderly parent, under this bill that person's job and health insurance will be secure.

Working to Increase Career Opportunities: Senator Feingold fought for federal funding of the Wisconsin Women's Business Initiative Corporation. This organization provides financial and technical business development assistance to female entrepreneurs. Senator Feingold joined with Congressman Klug to fight for a Nontraditional Employment for Women (NEW) grant for the state of Wisconsin. This program aids in the placement of women in nontraditional jobs.

Contributing to the Fight Against Breast Cancer: Senator Feingold helped pass the Feinstein Amendment, which has increased funding for breast cancer research responsibly by offering special postage stamps that cost one cent more than regular stamps.

Increasing Breast Cancer Research: Senator Feingold fought for millions in new breast cancer research from an unlikely source: the Department of Defense. The Army Breast Cancer Research Program is a valuable resource in the fight against this horrible disease that strikes millions of American women every year.

Ending Coercion and Sexual Harassment: Many businesses deny victims of sexual harassment the opportunity to fight back by requiring new employees to forfeit their right to sue as a condition of employment. By introducing The Protection From Coercive Employment Act and other actions, Senator Feingold is working to stop this unfair practice and protect women from the humiliation of sexual harassment.

Defending Reproductive Freedoms: Senator Feingold believes that abortions should be rare, safe and legal - he trusts the women of Wisconsin to make this decision, not the government.

Recognition of Senate Voting Record on Family Planning: Planned Parenthood awarded Senator Feingold a perfect 100% approval rating for his votes from 1995-2001 on family planning.

Recognition of Senate Voting Record on Reproductive Freedom: The National Abortion and Reproductive Rights Action League (NARAL) awarded Senator Feingold a perfect 100% approval rating for his votes from 1999-2000 on reproductive freedom.

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Read Senator Feingold's Statement on Reproductive Freedom.