英语课程计划-Equal Pay Day

Equal Pay Day is an American day of awareness¹ to highlight the fact that American men earn more than women for doing the same jobs. It is held on April 15 because this is how far into a new year that a woman must work to earn what a man earned in the previous year. Statistics released in 2008 showed that women earned on average 77.8 percent of their male colleagues’ earnings². Asian American women did a little better than this. For African American and Hispanic women, the figure was lower. This is happening in America today, even though equal pay was passed into law in 1963. Many women see the equality as doubly unfair because statistics also show that American women are better educated than men.

On Equal Pay Day, thousands of business and professional women and hundreds of civil rights and labour organizations take part in fair pay campaigns. They hold events across America demanding a fair wage. A lot of the campaigning is coordinated³ by the National Committee on Pay Equity⁴, which started Equal Pay Day in 1996. Eula Tate of the Coalition⁵ of Labor⁶ Union Women says equal pay is not just a woman’s issue: “If women are only paid 77 cents when they should get a dollar, their family suffers....Working families lose about $200 billion in income every year because of this pay discrimination,” she said. Campaigners usually wear red ribbons on this day as a symbol of how women and minorities are “in the red” with their pay.

1 awareness   

n.意识，觉悟，懂事，明智

参考例句：

• There is a general awareness that smoking is harmful.人们普遍认识到吸烟有害健康。
• Environmental awareness has increased over the years.这些年来人们的环境意识增强了。

2 earnings   

n.工资收人；利润，利益，所得

参考例句：

• That old man lives on the earnings of his daughter.那个老人靠他女儿的收入维持生活。
• Last year there was a 20% decrease in his earnings.去年他的收入减少了20%。

3 coordinated   

adj.协调的

参考例句：

• The sound has to be coordinated with the picture. 声音必须和画面协调一致。
• The numerous existing statutes are complicated and poorly coordinated. 目前繁多的法令既十分复杂又缺乏快调。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

4 equity   

n.公正，公平，（无固定利息的）股票

参考例句：

• They shared the work of the house with equity.他们公平地分担家务。
• To capture his equity,Murphy must either sell or refinance.要获得资产净值，墨菲必须出售或者重新融资。

5 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

6 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。