SALEM — Workers could not be punished for asking about or sharing wage information under a bill that has cleared the Oregon House.

House Bill 2007 went to the Senate on a 34-24 vote Tuesday. All Democrats voted for it, and all Republicans against it; one Democrat and one Republican were excused.

The bill resulted from a recommendation last year by the Oregon Council on Civil Rights, which issued a wide-ranging report on how Oregon can move toward equal pay.

According to its report, women earned 79 cents for every dollar men earned in Oregon in 2012, slightly more than the national average of 77 cents. The gaps are greater for black and Hispanic women.

Even in job categories that employ a majority of women, women earn 63.8 cents for every dollar earned by men.

Rep. Shemia Fagan, D-Clackamas, the bill’s floor manager, said women are less likely to know about disparities in pay or to speak up about them — and the bill would offer them protection.

The bill would make it an unlawful employment practice for employers to punish workers for asking about or sharing wage information.

An exception would apply to employees who have access to such information but disclose it to workers who are not authorized to have it; investigations, by the employer or others, are exempt.

But critics say the bill would disrupt relationships between employers and workers.

Among other recommendations of the council, which presented its report to state Labor Commissioner Brad Avakian: A requirement for paid sick leave; changes in state-subsidized day care for working families; renewal of child-care tax credits scheduled to expire this year, and more flexible work scheduling.