AUGUSTA, Maine — Gov. Janet Mills signed legislation to promote pay equality on Friday, April 12, according to the Associated Press.
The bill, LD 278, is sponsored by Sen. Cathy Breen (D-Falmouth). It would discourage employers from basing wages on an employee's salary history, focusing instead on market rates, skill, experience, educational background, and prior job performance.
The vote to pass the bill came in at 22-11 in the Senate and 86-54 in the House. It was passed on National Equal Pay Day, which fell on April 2.
National Equal Pay Day represents the date each year when the median wage for American women has caught up with the median wage for American men from the year before. In 2018, the average American woman had to work 15 months to earn what the average man earned in 12 months of work, according to the holiday.
In Maine, Sen. Breen's office says women tend to make 82 cents for every dollar that men make. This number is slightly above the national average -- research from the National Partnership for Women and Families shows women around the country tend to earn 80 cents for every dollar men earn.
Sen. Breen's bill would prohibit employers from asking about or using prior wage or salary information until an employment offer has been made. Breen's office notes that even employers with good intentions sometimes perpetuate the wage gap by basing wages on salary history, instead of experience and qualifications.
The Associated Press reports there is also another proposed amendment to the Maine Constitution to outlaw discrimination on the basis of gender.