Women are a vital part of our community and our workforce but are too often sidelined and excluded, limiting their growth. LCLAA is a strong advocate for reforms and policies that can promote the success and development of all workers and those that disproportionately impact the realities of women workers. 

 

Equal rights for women: Every individual, no matter their gender or sex, deserves to have equal and fair treatment and access to opportunities. Women continue to have less economic stability, and access to healthcare and are more likely to be subject to unwanted sexual advances, harassment, or harm than their male counterparts.

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This is why LCLAA calls for the following: 

 

• The ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment to provide clear and necessary legal protections for women

• Legislation that invests in programming and research into interventions that protect individuals from gender-based violence 

 

Equal treatment in the workplace: No worker should face discrimination in the workplace. Despite this, women continue to be paid less, have fewer opportunities, and have less benefits than their male counterparts. Women of color and mothers experience increased levels of discrimination in the workforce, with Latinas and Latina mothers experiencing one of the largest pay gaps of all ethnic and racial groups. 

 

This is why LCLAA calls for the following: 

• Legislation, such as the Paycheck Fairness Act, that strengthens protections against pay discrimination and addresses the Latina pay gap 

• Affordable, high-quality childcare and early childhood education programs 

• The passage of a national paid family and medical leave program

• State-run programs that provide training focused on negotiation, leadership, and career development

• Allocated jobs for women in construction and other male dominated professions/trades