Susan Collins voted against pay equity, sick leave

Maine Sen. Susan Collins voted against making it harder for employers to engage in sex-based wage discrimination. It was one of several positions she took in the Senate HELP Committee that was harmful to women.

HELP is an acronym for health, education, labor, and pensions. The committee, which Collins has served on since 2015, is tasked with creating laws and overseeing federal programs that deal with these topics.

Collins is seeking a sixth term and is widely regarded as the most vulnerable Republican senator facing reelection this year. Her Democratic opponent is state Sen. Troy Jackson.

In June 2023, Collins and other Republicans on the HELP Committee voted against advancing the Paycheck Fairness Act, which would have required employers to prove that any wage differences between men and women were strictly based on education, training, experience, or other merit-based factors.

When the bill was being debated, Collins voted for two amendments that would have effectively defanged the legislation. One would have allowed employers to avoid liability for wage discrimination if they had conducted a recent pay-equity audit and had taken reasonable steps to correct disparities. The other sought to completely eliminate the requirement that wages be based on merit. Both amendments faced bipartisan opposition.

The Paycheck Fairness Act never received a full Senate vote.

A month earlier, Collins voted against advancing the Healthy Families Act, which would have allowed most American workers to earn paid sick leave. Collins also backed an amendment to the bill that would have exempted seasonal workers from receiving the benefit.

Women make up the majority of seasonal workers in retail, hospitality, and general seasonal associate roles. A 2022 Health Affairs analysis found that women have less access to paid sick leave than men.

The Healthy Families Act also did not receive a full Senate vote.

In September 2023, the HELP Committee considered a bipartisan bill that would have provided $26 billion to expand primary care access and address health care worker shortages. The bill would have funded training for new doctors and dentists, including in rural areas.

Collins and other Republicans on the committee pushed for an amendment to the bill that would have blocked funding for abortion training. The amendment failed, and Collins ultimately voted against advancing the bill.

A Fox News poll from last month showed Jackson narrowly leading Collins by two points.