Skip to main content
S 841 109th Congress Senate

Paycheck Fairness Act

Official title: A bill to amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to provide more effective remedies to victims of discrimination in the payment of wages on the basis of sex, and for other purposes.

Introduced: April 19, 2005 See on congress.gov
Labor and Employment Administrative procedureApprenticeshipAwards, medals, prizesBusiness records
More subjectsShow fewer subjects
Civil Rights and Liberties, Minority IssuesCivil actions and liabilityCivil rights enforcementClass actions (Civil procedure)CommemorationsCommerceConferencesCongressCongressional reporting requirementsDamagesDepartment of EducationDepartment of LaborDisciplining of employeesDiscrimination in employmentEconomics and Public FinanceEducationElementary and secondary educationEmployee rightsEmployee trainingEmployers' liabilityEqual Employment Opportunity CommissionEvidence (Law)Expert witnessesFederal aid to educationFederal employeesGovernment Operations and PoliticsGovernment and businessGovernment contractorsGovernment paperworkGovernment publicityGovernmental investigationsHigher educationLabor statisticsLabor unionsLawLegal feesPay equityPersonnel recordsPosition classificationPunitive damagesSex discriminationSupervisorsSurveysVocational and technical educationWage surveysWagesWhistle blowingWomenWomen's educationWomen's employment
This bill died when the 109th Congress ended
It never became law before the 109th Congress (2005–2006) adjourned, and bills don't carry over to the next Congress. It would have to be reintroduced. You can still save it for reference, but it won't receive updates.
 Everywhere this bill has been 3 steps
Introduced
In committee
Reported out
Passed House
Passed Senate
To President
Became law
Apr 19, 2005
Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S3900-3901)
Apr 19, 2005
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
Apr 19, 2005
Introduced in Senate
 Ask about this bill AI · grounded in the bill text

Have a question about what this bill does? Ask in plain English; the answer is drawn from the bill's actual text and official record, and it'll tell you when something isn't in the text rather than guess.

AI answers can be imperfect; always confirm against the full bill text.

 Latest action April 19, 2005

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

 Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service

Paycheck Fairness Act - Amends the portion of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (FLSA) known as the Equal Pay Act to revise remedies for and enforcement of prohibitions against sex discrimination in the payment of wages to: (1) add nonretaliation requirements; (2) increase penalties; and (3) authorize the Secretary of Labor (the Secretary) to seek additional compensatory or punitive damages.

Requires the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs to train EEOC employees and affected individuals and entities on matters involving wage discrimination.

Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to eligible entities for negotiation skills training programs for girls and women. Directs the Secretaries of Labor and Education to issue regulations or policy guidance to integrate such training into certain programs under their Departments.

Directs the Secretary to provide for certain studies, information, national summit, and guidelines, awards, and assistance for employer evaluations of job categories based on objective criteria.

Establishes the Secretary of Labor's National Award for Pay Equity in the Workplace.

Amends the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to require the EEOC to collect certain pay information.

Directs: (1) the Commissioner of Labor Statistics to collect data on woman workers in the Current Employment Statistics survey; (2) the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs to use specified types of methods in investigating compensation discrimination and in enforcing pay equity; and (3) the Secretary to make accurate information on compensation discrimination readily available to the public.

 Bill text 1 version

Source documents hosted by congress.gov.

 Committees of jurisdiction 1
Cite this page click to expand
APA
U.S. Congress. (2026). S. 841: Paycheck Fairness Act. 109th Congress. Open America. https://openamerica.io/bill/109-S-841/
MLA
"S. 841: Paycheck Fairness Act." 109th Congress, 2026, Open America, https://openamerica.io/bill/109-S-841/.
Bluebook (legal)
S. 841, 109th Cong. (2026), https://openamerica.io/bill/109-S-841/.
Markdown link
[S. 841: Paycheck Fairness Act](https://openamerica.io/bill/109-S-841/)
Report a problem