Women’s Rights and Health

Jeff is committed to protecting the health, rights, and liberties of all women. Throughout his career, Jeff has fought for equal pay, working to restore the balance of power between workers and employees by providing legal protections to women who face pay discrimination. He believes that millions of hardworking American women should have the ability to properly care for themselves and their families, without worrying about their economic security. Jeff also led the successful fight that created the first set of national rights for new mothers who want to continue to breastfeed after returning to work, and he continues to push to expand those rights.

Jeff has fought to protect a woman’s constitutional right to the full scope of comprehensive reproductive health care, including abortion, and will continue to stand up against efforts that would allow the government to make personal health care decisions for a woman and her family. He has worked to create a society that is safe for women—one that is free of violence and harassment—and continues to speak out against those who use their positions of power to victimize individuals and silence women.

U.S. House of Representatives Passes Merkley Bill to Expand Right to Pump at Work

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley today announced that his legislation, the Providing Urgent Maternal Protections (PUMP) for Nursing Mothers Act, has passed the U.S. House of Representatives with strong bipartisan support on a vote of 276-149. The PUMP Act would expand a 2010 law authored by Merkley

Wyden, Merkley Co-Sponsor Bill to Close Retirement Gap for Women

Washington, D.C. – Oregon’s U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley said today they are co-sponsoring the Women’s Retirement Protection Act of 2021 (WRPA) legislation to address the retirement gap and bolster women’s financial security. “Coming out of a pandemic where more than 4 in 10 women expect to see

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