Female Democratic lawmakers call for equal pay in state

HELENA — Three female Democratic lawmakers from Helena on Thursday heralded fellow Democrat Gov. Steve Bullock for progress made on equal pay for women, saying his efforts would be instrumental in closing the wage gap that plagues Montana.

Standing in the shadow of artwork commonly called “The Women’s Mural” on the third floor of the state Capitol, they also criticized Republican challenger Greg Gianforte, saying they’ve yet to see him embrace support of fair pay for women.

“There’s a stark contrast between Steve Bullock and Greg Gianforte,” said Sen. Christine Kaufmann, who was joined at the news conference by Helena Democratic Representatives Moffie Funk and Jenny Eck.

Gianforte is a high-tech entrepreneur who started RightNow technologies in Bozeman in which he created 500 jobs which paid an average of nearly $90,000 a year.

His spokesman defended his actions when it comes to females in the workforce.

“Greg Gianforte is proud of his record at RightNow where he assembled a diverse team of people from all different backgrounds, genders, races and orientations,” Aaron Flint said. “He believes that promotions and paychecks should be blind to gender and other personal attributes and based solely on ability to do a job. That's just good business.”

Bullock signed an executive order on Monday encouraging businesses that work with the state to offer equal pay for female employees, saying that equal pay for equal work was a concept that rises above partisan politics.

The average female worker in Montana makes 74 percent of the wages made by her male counterpart, Bullock said at the Monday rally. He launched an Equal Pay Task Force through an executive order in 2013. He said legislation calling for equal pay would be introduced in the 2017 session.

Eck said the issue was getting more traction among House and Senate members.

“I’m optimistic we can get there,” she said.

Funk said Gianforte has supported groups such as the Heritage Foundation and Americans for Prosperity that have opposed the U.S. Paycheck Fairness Act.

On Thursday, Gianforte was joined by U.S. Sen Steve Daines as they observed National Start Up Day with a tour of Uberbrew Restaurant and Brewery in Billings, which was founded in 2012 by Mark Hastings and Jason Shroyer.

“Uberbrew is a great example of the success and positive impact that can be achieved by Montana entrepreneurs,” Gianforte said. “We also need leadership in the state that understands what entrepreneurs need to succeed.”