Eleanor Holmes Norton

To amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to prohibit discrimination in the payment of wages on account of sex, race, or national origin, and for other purposes.

in committee

Recognizing the disenfranchisement of District of Columbia residents, calling for statehood for the District of Columbia through the enactment of the Washington, D.C. Admission Act, and expressing support for the designation of May 1, 2026, as "D.C. Statehood Day".

in committee

Veterans Legal Support Act of 2026

in committee

“Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, today, I introduce the Federal Employee Short-Term Disability Insurance Act of 2026, which would make short- term disability insurance available to federal employees. Employees would be responsible for 100 percent of the premiums and would receive benefits for up to one year. Insurance companies would be prohibited from excluding federal employees, or charging them higher premiums, based on preexisting conditions. Many privatesector employers make available disability insurance to their employees. I began examining how we could provide federal employees with short- term disability insurance at group rates and with guaranteed coverage after learning that many of them buy such insurance in the individual market, which can have high premiums and exclude those with preexisting conditions. Although federal employees have good health insurance, health insurance benefits do not replace lost income. Moreover, while federal employees may have available sick or annual leave, they may not have enough such leave to pay the bills if they cannot work for an extended period, such as following surgery. Although the federal government provides disability benefits to federal employees who become permanently disabled, federal employees do not qualify for these benefits until they have worked for the federal government for at least 18 months. The Office of Personnel Management would contract with insurance companies to provide short-term disability insurance. According to the Social Security Administration, a 20-year-old worker has a one-in-four chance of becoming disabled by retirement age. The majority of disabilities are not caused by major accidents, but by injuries or illnesses, according to the Council for Disability Awareness. I urge my colleagues to support this bill. ____________________”

2026-05-11 · Labor

“Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, today, I introduce the Fair Pay Act of 2026. This bill would require that if men and women are doing comparable work, they must be paid comparable wages. The Equal Pay Act of 1963 (EPA), the first of the great civil rights statutes of the 1960s, has grown creaky with age and needs updating to reflect the new workforce, in which women work as much as men. As the first woman to chair the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, where I enforced the EPA, I introduce this bill on behalf of the average female worker, who is often first steered to, and then locked into, jobs with wages that are deeply influenced by the gender of individuals who have traditionally held such jobs. The pay disparity most women face today stems mainly from the segregation of women and men in different jobs and women in female-dominated jobs being paid systematically less. For example, if a woman is an emergency services operator, a female-dominated profession, she should not be paid less than a fire dispatcher, a male-dominated profession, simply because each of these jobs has been dominated by one gender. We need more aggressive strategies to break through the societal barriers present throughout history, as well as employer-steering based on gender, which is as old as paid employment itself. What may be the best case for a stronger and updated EPA occurred in Congress in 2003, when female custodians in the House and Senate won an EPA case after showing that female employees were paid a dollar less per hour for doing the same or similar work as male employees. Had those women not been represented by their union, they would have had an almost impossible task in using the rules for bringing and sustaining an EPA class action lawsuit. This bill would not change the legal burden. Under this bill, as under the EPA, the burden would be on the plaintiff to prove discrimination. The plaintiff must show that the reason for the disparate treatment is gender discrimination, not legitimate market factors. Remedies to achieve comparable pay for men and women are not radical or unprecedented. State governments, in red and blue states alike, have shown that it is possible to eliminate the part of the pay gap that is due to job-steering. Many state governments have adjusted wages for female-dominated professions, raising pay for teachers, nurses, clerical workers, librarians and other female-dominated jobs that paid less than comparable male-dominated jobs. Minnesota, for example, implemented a pay equity plan when it found that traditionally female jobs paid 20 percent less than comparable traditionally male jobs. There may well be some portion of the gender wage gap that is traceable to market factors, but states have shown that you can tackle the gender discrimination-based wage gap without interfering in the market system. States generally have closed the wage gap over a period of four to five years at a one-time cost of no more than three to four percent of payroll. Unequal pay has been built into the way women have been treated since Adam and Eve. To dislodge such deep-seated and pervasive treatment, we must go to the source, the traditionally female occupations, where pay is linked with gender and always has been. I urge my colleagues to support this bill. ____________________”

2026-05-04 · Labor

“Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I rise to recognize Thomas Atkins, who served as a dedicated member of my staff for almost 20 years, where he worked tirelessly to advance my agenda for all residents of the District of Columbia. Thomas has an extensive political background, having served as the National Volunteer Coordinator on the Jackson for President Campaign '84 and as a Political Director with the Campaign for Military Service. He also served as a leader in the environmental movement and the peace movement and has worked for justice on important political issues. He has made a positive impact on D.C. and the world. As his colleagues will attest, Thomas works with commitment and passion. In my office, his deep dedication to the arts and education were invaluable when he served as the Coordinator of the D.C. Congressional Art Competition Committee. His leadership, enthusiasm and commitment ensured successful competitions, which brought together locally, nationally and internationally renowned educators and artists to serve as committee members and jurors. Through his leadership, the committee was able to offer mentorship to aspiring young artists and facilitate scholarships to esteemed institutions like the Savannah College of Art and Design (Savannah, Georgia) and the Corcoran School of the Arts & Design (Washington, D.C.). The committee also hosted grand receptions and student art exhibits at prestigious venues, including the Smithsonian Institution, the National Building Museum, the Corcoran Gallery of Art, Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport and notable galleries throughout D.C. Thomas has held several professional roles. He worked in the entertainment industry, where he served as the Personal Representative of Hal Jackson, a founder of Inner City Broadcasting Corporation (ICBC), and his daughter Jane Jackson Harley, Talent Coordinator of the Apollo Theater and the Founder of Kemit Productions in New York City. He is an avid art collector and has traveled extensively around the world. His collection, the TERA Gallery, has been exhibited in the United States and abroad. Mr. Speaker, I ask the House of Representatives to recognize Thomas Atkins for his service and dedication. We all wish him the best in his well-deserved retirement. ____________________”

2026-04-22 · Government Reform