Wage Gap Still Exists Between Women and Men in the Workplace

CHICAGO - Governor Pat Quinn today joined local elected officials to recognize Equal Pay Day and raise awareness of the disparity that remains between workplace earnings among women and men. This date, proclaimed by the Governor and designated by the Illinois General Assembly, marks how far into the current year a woman must work, on average, to earn as much as a man earned the previous year. Today's observance is part of Governor Quinn's agenda to drive economic growth and ensure that all Illinois workers are treated fairly.

"If someone does the same work, they should earn the same pay," Governor Quinn said. "Yet here we are in 2014 - 51 years after President Kennedy signed the Equal Pay Act - and women on average still don't earn as much as their male counterparts in the workplace. We won't be satisfied until all workers are equally compensated for the same work, regardless of their gender. When women succeed, our economy grows."

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Illinois women still earn just 78 cents of every dollar earned by Illinois men based on the median weekly earnings of full-time workers. The Illinois Department of Labor (IDOL) enforces the Illinois Equal Pay Act, which was enacted to help close the wage gap between men and women.  IDOL has successfully recovered hundreds of thousands of dollars in back wages for women who were paid less than their male co-workers for doing the same work, which is prohibited under the Act.

"Our Department has helped Illinois workers recover wages they lost as a result of gender-based pay discrimination," IDOL Director Joseph Costigan said. "Through rigorous enforcement, we will continue to ensure fair pay in the workplace."

Since the law went into effect in 2004, the Department has received 709 complaints and of the investigations completed to date, has recovered more than $690,000 in back wages for workers who did not receive equal pay for equal work.

Illinois' Equal Pay Act prohibits employers with four or more employees from paying unequal wages to men and women doing the same or substantially similar work, requiring equal skill, effort, responsibility and under similar working conditions. The law protects both men and women and any individual who files an equal pay complaint is protected under the Act from harassment or retaliation. If an employer is found guilty of pay discrimination, they will be required to make up the wage difference to the employee and may be subject to pay legal costs and civil fines of up to $2,500 per violation.

Today's Equal Pay Day observance is the latest in Governor Quinn's drive to protect and empower women in Illinois. The Governor's actions to support women and equal rights include :

• Fought for and signed a law amending the Equal Pay Act to give victims of underpayment more time to address their claims.
• Launched the innovative Birth to Five Initiative in his 2014 State of the State address to expand access to prenatal care; early care and learning opportunities for every child; and strong parent support.
• Leading the charge to increase the state's minimum wage to at least $10 per hour - six in ten minimum wage workers in Illinois are female.
• In his 2014 State of the State address, proposed a minimum of two days of earned sick leave per year for 2.5 million Illinois workers, 78 percent of whom are women, who have no sick leave.
• Launched the first ever Women Owned Business Symposium.

For more information on Illinois' Equal Pay Act or to file a complaint, call the Illinois Department of Labor's Equal Pay hotline at 1-866-EPA-IDOL. Complaint forms are also available to download on the Department's website: Labor.Illinois.gov.

CAMP SANTIAGO, PUERTO RICO (04/08/2014)(readMedia)-- Approximately 40 Illinois National Guard Special Forces (SF) Soldiers with Company A, 2nd Battalion, 20th Special Forces Group (Airborne) in Chicago conducted foreign internal defense (FID) training with the Puerto Rico National Guard, April 2 to 6, 2014 at Camp Santiago in Salinas, Puerto Rico.

More than 300 Puerto Rico National Guardsmen were familiarized with marksmanship training, mechanical and ballistic breaching procedures, military operations on urban terrain and close-quarter battle techniques.

"We were able to teach basic fundamentals to establish a baseline of proficiency to build upon in future training," said a weapons sergeant with the Company A, 2-20th. "They were very receptive and we were able to challenge their abilities."

SF Soldiers shared techniques for more accurate and proficient shooting with the M16A2 rifle, M4 Carbine, M249 squad automatic weapon and M240B machine gun.

"The tactical weapons training was the best part," said Spc. Christopher Figueroa, with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 296th Infantry Regiment in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico. "The opportunity to fire crew serve weapons was very beneficial and refreshing."

Each unit said they gained language proficiency, because both English and Spanish were spoken throughout the training.

"This was the first time I had to use English for training," said Spc. Eric Aponte, an infantryman with Company A, 1st Battalion, 296th Infantry Regiment in Utuado, Puerto Rico. "They have been great at explaining the training step by step and I learned a lot."

The training was an opportunity for SF Soldiers to maintain their primary skillsets in a foreign culture while advancing language capabilities. Puerto Rico Guardsmen improved their ability to operate as a cohesive unit with a culminating exercise that involved mission planning, movement as a 30-man element and operating in a complex urban environment.

In the past three years Company A, 2-20th has deployed four operational detachments to Central America for long-term FID missions, but this is the first time in more than 10 years Company A, 2-20th conducted training in Puerto Rico.

"There were long days with little sleep, but everyone enjoyed the training," said 1st Lt. Alexis Avellanet, the executive officer for Company C, 1st Battalion, 296th Infantry Regiment in Cabo Rojo, Puerto Rico. "We will take this back to our units and raise the standard of training."

DES MOINES, IA (04/08/2014)(readMedia)-- State Treasurer Michael L. Fitzgerald is encouraging Iowans to make the most of their tax refunds this year by investing in College Savings Iowa. "Much like the April 15 deadline for taxes, the time to save for college is over before you know it," said Fitzgerald. "Put your refund to good use and start saving for a loved one's future educational needs today. By starting early, saving a little at a time and making smart investment choices, families can make their savings work for them."

College Savings Iowa is designed to provide families a tax-advantaged way to save money for their children's higher education. It only takes $25 to open an account, and anyone - parents, grandparents, friends and relatives - can invest in College Savings Iowa on behalf of a child. Participants who are Iowa taxpayers can deduct contributions up to $3,098 per beneficiary from their 2014 adjusted gross income, and there are no income or residency restrictions.* Earnings grow tax free and investors can withdraw their investment federally and Iowa state tax-free to pay for qualified higher education expenses including tuition, books, supplies and certain room and board costs at any eligible college, university, community college or accredited technical training school in the United States or abroad.**

Saving for a child's education is always a smart investment, and College Savings Iowa is there to help. To learn more about College Savings Iowa or to open an account, please visit collegesavingsiowa.com or call 1-888-672-9116.

*Adjusted annually for inflation. If withdrawals are not qualified, the deductions must be added back to Iowa taxable income.

**Earnings on non-qualified withdrawals may be subject to federal income tax and a 10% federal penalty tax, as well as state income taxes. The availability of tax or other benefits may be contingent on meeting other requirements.

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Investment returns are not guaranteed and you could lose money by investing in the plan. Participants assume all investment risks as well as responsibility for any federal and state tax consequences. If you are not an Iowa taxpayer, consider before investing whether your or the designated beneficiary's home state offers any state tax or other benefits that are only available for investments in such state's qualified tuition program.

For more information about the College Savings Iowa 529 Plan, call 888-672-9116 or visit www.collegesavingsiowa.com to obtain a Program Description. Investment objectives, risks, charges, expenses, and other important information are included in the Program Description; read and consider it carefully before investing.

College Savings Iowa is an Iowa trust sponsored by the Iowa State Treasurer's Office. The Treasurer of the State of Iowa sponsors and is responsible for overseeing the administration of the College Savings Iowa 529 Plan. The Vanguard Group, Inc., serves as Investment Manager and Vanguard Marketing Corporation, an affiliate of The Vanguard Group, Inc., assists the Treasurer with marketing and distributing the Plan. Upromise Investment Advisors, LLC, provides records administration services. The Plan's portfolios, although they invest in Vanguard mutual funds, are not mutual funds.

Award winning Illinois folksinger Chris Valillo will perform Songs of the Civil Rights Movement on Wednesday, April 16th at 6:30 p.m. at the Moline Public Library (3210 - 41st Street).  This program is free and does not require registration.

This concert is presented as part of the six-week series Created Equal and Changing America, which explores our nation's civil rights history through film, exhibition, and presentations.  More information about the series can be found at molinelibrary.com/createdequal or by contacting the Moline Public Library at 309-524-2470.

From "We Shall Overcome" to "Blowin in the Wind", music played a vital role in the civil rights movement both as an inspirational rallying point for the Freedom Riders and as a way to spread the message of equality and justice.  Mr. Valillo will perform pivotal songs from the music that inspired and sustained this landmark movement and discusses the impact of music to this most important social cause.

Chris Valillo is a nationally acclaimed singer/songwriter and folk musician who makes the people and places of "unmetropolitan" America come to life in song.  Performing on six-string and bottleneck slide guitars and harmonica, Valillo weaves original, contemporary, and traditional songs and narratives into a compelling and entertaining portrait of the history and lifestyles of the Midwest.

Created Equal: America's Civil Rights Struggle is made possible through a major grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities, as part of its Bridging Cultures initiative, in partnership with the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History.

Changing America is presented by the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture and the National Museum of American History in collaboration with the American Library Association Public Programs Office. The traveling exhibition is made possible by the National Endowment for the Humanities: Exploring the human endeavor.

Local support for Created Equal and Changing America has been provided by Friends of the Moline Public Library, WQPT, and The Moline Dispatch/Rock Island Argus/QCOnline.