奥巴马每周电视讲话：总统为女性争取同工同酬

Hi, everybody.
大家好。
Earlier this week was Equal Pay Day.
本周二是同酬日。
It marks the extra time the average woman has to work into a new year to earn what a man earned the year before.
数据显示，平均而言，在新的一年里，女性要挣与男性过去一年里同样的工资还要搭上更多的工作时间。
You see, the average woman who works full-time¹ in America earns less than a man-even when she's in the same profession and has the same education.
大家都知道，在美国，全职女性的平均工资比男性要低，即便她有着与男性相比同样的专业技能和教育水平。
That's wrong.
这大错特错。
In 2014, it's an embarrassment².
时至2014年的今天，这也是一种耻辱。
Women deserve equal pay for equal work.
女性应该得到平等的待遇。
This is an economic issue that affects all of us.
这一经济问题影响到我们每一个人。
Women make up about half our workforce³.
女性已经占到全美劳动力的一半。
And more and more, they're our families' main breadwinners.
而且她们越来越多成为家庭的主要经济支柱。
So it's good for everyone when women are paid fairly.
因此，女性得到公平的薪资对所有人都有好处。
That's why, this week, I took action to prohibit more businesses from punishing workers who discuss their salaries.
因此本周我采取措施禁止更多公司惩罚员工讨论薪水的行为。
Because more pay transparency makes it easier to spot pay discrimination.
因为增加工资透明度才能更好的辨别是否存在工资歧视问题。
And I hope more business leaders will take up this cause.
我也希望有更多企业领袖能意识到这一问题的根源所在。
But equal pay is just one part of an economic agenda for women.
但公平工资只是维护女性权益的一部分。
Most lower-wage workers in America are women.
在美国女性承担着大量低工资的岗位。
So I've taken executive action to require federal contractors⁴ to pay their federally-funded employees at least ten dollars and ten cents an hour.
因此，我签署了一项行政命令要求联邦合同承包商向其员工支付至少每小时10.10美元薪资。
I ordered a review of our nation's overtime⁵ rules, to give more workers the chance to earn the overtime pay they deserve.
我还指示对我国的加班制度进行调查，让更多劳动者有机会得到他们应得的加班费。
Thanks to the Affordable⁶ Care Act, tens of millions of women are now guaranteed free preventive care like mammograms and contraceptive care, and the days when you could be charged more just for being a woman are over for good.
由于有了《平价医保法》，数千万女性现在得到了免费医疗保健保障，例如乳腺X射线扫描和避孕指导，那种因为你是女性接受治疗就要被多收费的日子已经一去不复返了。
Across the country, we're bringing Americans together to help us make sure that a woman can have a baby without sacrificing her job, or take a day off to care for a sick child or parent without hitting hardship.
纵观全国，我们正在带领全国人民一起努力，确保一个女性不必因为生小孩而牺牲自己的工作，或者因为要照顾生病的孩子而请假或因此而陷入贫困。
It's time to do away with workplace policies that belong in a “Mad Men” episode, and give every woman the opportunity she deserves.
摈弃《广告狂人》时代的那种工作场所潜规则的时机已经到来，给每个女性得到其应得的待遇。
Here's the problem, though.
这是当下的问题。
On issues that would benefit millions of women, Republicans in Congress have blocked progress at every turn.
这项事宜将惠及数百万女性，而国会的共和党人却在每一步上阻挠这一工作的开展。
Just this week, Senate Republicans blocked the Paycheck Fairness Act, commonsense⁷ legislation that would help more women win equal pay for equal work.
就在本周，参议院的共和党人阻挠《工资公平法》的通过，这一正常立法本应帮助更多女性获得同工同酬的待遇。
House Republicans won't vote to raise the minimum wage or extend unemployment insurance for women out of work through no fault of their own.
众议院的共和党人不同意就提高最低工资和延长失业保险进行投票，而享受失业保险的失业女性现在的处境并非其自身原因所造成。
The budget they passed this week would force deep cuts to investments that overwhelmingly benefit women and children-like Medicaid, food stamps, and college grants.
他们本周通过的预算法案将强制对全面惠及妇女和儿童的投资进行大规模的削减，例如医疗补助计划，食物券以及大学资助计划。
And of course, they're trying to repeal⁸ the Affordable Care Act for the fiftieth or so time, which would take away vital benefits and protections from millions of women.
当然，他们还在极力想要推翻《平价医保法》，到现在为止这已经适第50次了，这将剥夺数百万女性享有的关键福利和医疗保障。
I'm going to keep fighting to make sure that doesn't happen.
我将继续为确保这一情况不发生而奋斗。
Because we do better when our economy grows for everybody, not just a few.
只有经济发展惠及所有人而不是少数人的时候我们才能做的更好。
And when women succeed, America succeeds.
只有当女性取得成功了，美国才能成功。
Thanks, and have a great weekend.
谢谢大家，祝你们周末愉快。

1 full-time   

adj.满工作日的或工作周的，全时间的

参考例句：

• A full-time job may be too much for her.全天工作她恐怕吃不消。
• I don't know how she copes with looking after her family and doing a full-time job.既要照顾家庭又要全天工作，我不知道她是如何对付的。

2 embarrassment   

n.尴尬；使人为难的人(事物)；障碍；窘迫

参考例句：

• She could have died away with embarrassment.她窘迫得要死。
• Coughing at a concert can be a real embarrassment.在音乐会上咳嗽真会使人难堪。

3 workforce   

n.劳动大军，劳动力

参考例句：

• A large part of the workforce is employed in agriculture.劳动人口中一大部分受雇于农业。
• A quarter of the local workforce is unemployed.本地劳动力中有四分之一失业。

4 contractors   

n.（建筑、监造中的）承包人( contractor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• We got estimates from three different contractors before accepting the lowest. 我们得到3个承包商的报价后，接受了最低的报价。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Contractors winning construction jobs had to kick back 2 per cent of the contract price to the mafia. 赢得建筑工作的承包商得抽出合同价格的百分之二的回扣给黑手党。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 overtime   

adj.超时的，加班的；adv.加班地

参考例句：

• They are working overtime to finish the work.为了完成任务他们正在加班加点地工作。
• He was paid for the overtime he worked.他领到了加班费。

6 affordable   

adj.支付得起的，不太昂贵的

参考例句：

• The rent for the four-roomed house is affordable.四居室房屋的房租付得起。
• There are few affordable apartments in big cities.在大城市中没有几所公寓是便宜的。

7 commonsense   

adj.有常识的；明白事理的；注重实际的

参考例句：

• It is commonsense to carry an umbrella in this weather.这种天气带把伞是很自然的。
• These results are no more than a vindication of commonsense analysis.这些结果只不过是按常理分析得出的事实。

8 repeal   

n.废止，撤消；v.废止，撤消

参考例句：

• He plans to repeal a number of current policies.他计划废除一些当前的政策。
• He has made out a strong case for the repeal of the law.他提出强有力的理由，赞成废除该法令。