We are encouraged to report that on Friday, January 9, 2009, the U.S. House of Representatives confirmed its support of the need to broaden the ability of our courts to enforce the laws against gender discrimination. A New York Times article published on January 10, 2009 discussed the two related bills passed by the House.
The conduct of the House appears to reflect a significant trend away from the lackluster approach of the present administration to its enforcement of human rights laws. In reaction to the legislation which was being put forward by the House Speaker, Nancy Pelosi stated that, “This is the legislation we are putting forward . . . pay equity, fairness to women in the workplace.”
Also of considerable interest was the reaction of the House to the U.S. Supreme Court decision in 2007, which, in the Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire Company, Inc. case, unfortunately “enforced” a strict 180 day deadline to file a pay discrimination suit. As a result, the plaintiff, Lilly M. Ledbetter, was denied the relief she judicially requested. The Ledbetter decision had been sharply criticized and, in fact, it was suggested at the time of the U.S. Supreme Court decision that the appropriate method of responding to the High Court was for Congress to do so by legislation. We are pleased that this sentiment was expressed and heard by the House and we sincerely trust that the legislation passed by the House is treated in the same fashion by the Senate as it moves forward.
The reader may recall that in Ledbetter, the finding of the jury was that the employer, Goodyear Tire Company, Inc., paid Ledbetter less than her male coworkers. This, of course, was in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Our recollection is that at the time of the Supreme Court decision, there was a comment in the dissenting opinion that the decision was worth reviewing by the legislature. That appears to be exactly what was done and we are delighted at the result.
One of the Congressmen in support of this new legislation acknowledged that although women had made gains in the workplace, “disparities persisted.” We expect to report on this subject further as additional information becomes available.