Female members of Congress recognized "Equal Pay Day" Tuesday by calling attention to the gender wage gap across the country.
The latest US Census data shows salary disparities between men and women in every major industry nationwide.
The deputy director of the Nevada Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation (DETR) said the pay disparity is a big problem in Nevada, too.
"No matter how you slice it, at the end of the day, we have an equal pay issue that's based off of gender," DETR Deputy Director Dennis Perea said.
A study released Tuesday by the National Partnership for Women and Families shows that on average, women in Nevada make 84 cents on the dollar, compared to men. That adds up to a little over $7,000 a year in lost income.
Perea said it's discrimination, and a complex problem that needs fixing. But there is a variety of factors that influence the issue, ranging from which subjects girls are encouraged to study, to whether employers are concealing how much their workers make.
"Not all companies are created equal," Perea said, "but I believe that companies will pay the lowest amount that they can get for that work."
There are several related bills going through the 2017 Nevada legislature. One would ask companies to report their wage information to the state so consumers could see which ones pay women equally. Another would make it illegal for employers to discourage workers from discussing their pay with each other. Stay with Channel 2 for updates as we follow these bills, and others, through the session.
