Donald Trump would use the power of the federal government to “change labor laws” to ensure companies pay women and men equally, and he would pursue universal childcare policies if elected president, according to his daughter, Ivanka Trump, who spoke Thursday at the Republican National Convention.
“Politicians talk about wage equality, but my father has made it a practice at his company throughout his entire career,” Ivanka Trump said before introducing her father on the convention stage. “He will fight for equal pay for equal work and I will fight for this, too, right alongside of him.”
The promises made by Trump’s eldest daughter on the gender equality issue reflect a departure from traditional federal labor policies emphasized by Republican leaders. If true, it would put her father’s agenda closer to that of his Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton, than others in his party.
‘Focus on making quality childcare affordable’
Ivanka Trump: “As president, my father will change the labor laws … and he will focus on making quality childcare affordable and accessible for all.”
‘Make it easier to pay for childcare’
Hillary Clinton: “I will do everything I can to make it easier to pay for childcare.”
‘… fighting for women’s health care and paid family leave’
Hillary Clinton: “If fighting for women’s health care and paid family leave and equal pay is playing the woman’s card, then deal me in.”
‘American families need relief’
Ivanka Trump: “As a mother myself of three young children, I know how hard it is to raise a family and I know that I am far more fortunate than most. American families need relief. Policies that allow women to thrive should not be novelties, they should be the norm.”
‘Women are paid equally for the work’
Ivanka Trump: “At my father’s company, there are more female than male executives. Women are paid equally for the work that we do and when a woman becomes a mother, she is supported, not shut out.”
‘In 2014, women made 83 cents for every dollar earned by a man’
Ivanka Trump: “In 2014, women made 83 cents for every dollar earned by a man. Single women without children earned 94 cents for every dollar earned by a man, whereas married mothers made only 77 cents. As researchers have noted, gender is no longer creating the greatest wage discrepancy in this country, motherhood is.”
‘We still make it hard on women to go into the work force’
Hillary Clinton: “We don’t have enough support for maternal leave and the kinds of things that some of the European countries do. So we still make it hard on women to go into the work force and feel that they can be good at work but then doing the most important job, which is raising your children in a responsible and positive way.”
