Macy's Convinces Rick Perry That Women Don't Need Equal Pay

UltraViolet, the activist organization that convinced Reebok to stop sponsoring rapey rapper Rick Ross, is putting the pressure on Macy’s for helping to defeat a crucial equal pay bill meant to protect women from gender discrimination.

The bill would have given employees who are discriminated against more time to sue in state court, which would’ve really helped the thousands of busy rural and low-income women who don’t have the means to seek justice in far-away federal courts. It passed the Texas legislature with strong bipartisan support, but Governor Rick Perry vetoed it last month at Macy’s request because he cares about literally anyone and everyone more than he cares about low-income women (fetuses, Santa Claus, now shopping malls).

On Friday, a Macy’s representative told Women’s Wear Daily that the bill was useless because existing state and federal laws provide remedies for “the resolution of any claims of discrimination.” But this bill isn’t some uncalled for extravagant concession — 42 other states have enacted similar laws to protect women. Wage discrimination is a big fucking deal that costs women and their families an average of $431,000 over their careers, according to UltraViolet.

“I’m not sure if Macy’s is in the business of stopping legislation, but I’m sure they’re in the business of lobbying legislation,” said Chaudhary. “We’ve had no response from Macy’s since the [Texas] bill was vetoed, so we are increasing the volume to make sure this doesn’t happen again. Macy’s is a national brand and it is primarily targeting women who control more than 70 percent of household purchases. Macy’s is in the midst of targeting moms with back-to-school marketing campaigns and sales, and Macy’s should be supporting, not blocking, equal pay, especially if they want to woo women as a customer.”

Macy’s sent out this statement: “Macy’s absolutely supports equal pay for equal work among men and women. This has been a fundamental principle in our company for many years. Keep in mind that 73 percent of management-level executives at Macy’s Inc. are women, and we have been widely recognized for our support of women at all levels of the organization and in the communities where we operate. We believe that existing federal and Texas state laws provide strong remedies for the resolution of any claims of discrimination.”