More than sixty years after the passage of the Equal Pay Act, women still earn 84 cents for every dollar made by men on average—and it’s even less for women of color. For a woman working full-time year-round, the current wage gap represents a loss of more than $400,000 over the course of her career, a gap that widens dramatically for women of color. The wage gap impacts women’s ability to save for retirement, and hurts their Social Security and pension benefits, contributing to more older women living in poverty.

We must do more to address the gender wage gap. I am proud to support the Paycheck Fairness Act, which would combat wage discrimination on the basis of sex. The bill requires pay differences to be related to only job-related factors, makes it unlawful to prohibit employees from discussing wages, and prohibits employers from soliciting salary history, among other important provisions.

We must also ensure that women have the social support they need to thrive in the workplace—this includes access to child care, long-term care, and paid family leave. Not investing in these benefits costs our economy $750 billion per year in lost wages. Women bear the brunt of this impact.

Supporting women in the workplace also includes ensuring women feel safe in the workplace. One in three women has faced sexual harassment in the workplace over the course of her career. Sexual harassment forces many women to leave their occupations or industries or pass up opportunities for advancement. I was proud to champion the passage of the bipartisan Speak Out Act, which ensures that survivors of sexual harassment and assault have the right to come forward. This is one step to holding harassers accountable and ensuring a safe, respectful workplace for women and all workers.