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Congress begins new session with bills supporting working women
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Congress is expected to begin its new session by taking action on the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act and the Paycheck Fairness Act tomorrow. Both bills passed the House in the past session, but Senate Republicans blocked a similar vote in the Senate.
After years of working at an Alabama Goodyear tire plant, Ledbetter (see video below) discovered she was being paid less than the lowest-paid man doing the same work. She gathered enough evidence to file suit, and a jury awarded her $3.8 million. But Goodyear appealed to the Supreme Court.
In May 2007, the Supreme Court squelched the award and ruled that Ledbetter—and other workers—have no right to sue for a remedy in cases of pay discrimination where workers wait more than 180 days after their first paycheck, even if they don’t discover the pay discrimination until years later.
The Paycheck Fairness Act, introduced by Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.), would provide more effective remedies for women who are not paid equal wages for doing equal work, by adding some teeth to the 1963 Equal Pay Act.
Women are paid only 77 cents for every dollar a man is paid, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Women workers covered by a union contract are guaranteed equal pay. But millions of other working women don’t have that protection and must rely on today’s inadequate fair pay laws.
The passage of both bills along with the anticipated confirmation of Labor Secretary Designee Hilda Solis sets a new course as the government once again respects working people. The Employee Free Choice Act will also be considered during this session and will allow workers to negotiate with their employers if a majority approve through a simple card check procedure. Only after an agreement is negotiated and approved by a majority of workers in a secret ballot election will the employees have a union.
More About:
Labor ·
Employee Free Choice Act ·
Human Rights ·
Hilda Solis ·
AFL-CIO ·
Women's rights
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