For Immediate Release
Wednesday, August 26, 1998
Tipper Gore Urges AFSCME Women to Become Equal Partners in the Economy
Honolulu, Hawaii —Speaking before a packed breakfast crowd this morning and touching on issues that deeply resonated with her audience, Tipper Gore encouraged AFSCME women to become "Equal Partners" in the American Economy.
Gore spoke passionately on union issues at the Equal Partners Breakfast of the AFSCME 33rd Convention. The event is coordinated by the Women’s Rights Department and drew an enthusiastic, capacity crowd of 2,200 participants.
Congratulating AFSCME for being "on the forefront for fighting for the rights and the needs of working women," Gore inspired loud applause when she spoke of employees’ right to organize. "We (the Clinton-Gore administration) believe as you do, in the freedom of all workers to organize without employer interference, period," she said. "We also stand for the right of all workers to better their lives by joining a union, period."
She said the administration has worked for equal pay, promotional opportunities, working family programs for all workers and has fought all forms of discrimination and violence against women. Gore called on AFSCME to help pass additional increases in the minimum wage so that all Americans could share in the nation’s prosperity. She said women in the work place is "a key ingredient in the economic strength of the nation."
Gore spelled out the challenges for making women equal partners in the economy. She noted that one of two workers in America are women. One in four women provide more than half the income of their families. And yet women, on average, only make 75 cents for every dollar men make. "Our nation was founded on a very important principle that all Americans deserve equal pay for equal work," Gore said as the audience responded with loud applause.
Praising AFSCME for winning pay equity adjustments of more than a half a billion dollars at the bargaining table and in state legislatures, Gore said the current wage structures were established when women were primarily relegated to child bearing and men were the wage earners. Now, millions of women must do both.
Gore proudly noted the administration’s passage of the Family Leave Medical Act which allowed working people to take time off to care for sick children or parents without fear of losing their jobs. Passing the law was important, she said "so that people don’t have to choose between their responsibilities to their families and their reponsiblities to their work place." AFSCME took the lead in lobbying for passage of the Family Leave Act.
After the speech, AFSCME members rushed to the podium to congratulate Gore for taking strong stands on women and union issues.
Lois Fukushima, who works in the Department of Education in Hawaii said she was very pleased with Gore’s emphasis on families and her strong support for Family Leave policies. "I’m doing an adoption and this will be helpful for me as a single working person."
Evon Sutton of Philadelphia, Pensylvania, who is a member of AFSCME Women’s Advisory Committee, said that Gore’s agressive call for equal pay for equal work is important to working women. "She’s on her way to being first lady," Sutton said with a smile.
Fifty-one percent of AFSCME’s 1.3 million members are women. Nine women serve on AFSCME’s Executive Board
