President Obama Signs Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act: Equal Pay for Equal Work Required
Written by: Lauren Perry
President Obama signed the first significant bill of his Presidency this morning, passing the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act. This act will effectively overturn a 2007 U.S. Supreme Court decision saying employees had only 180 days to file a pay-discrimination lawsuit.
Lilly Ledbetter was a South Carolina tire plant supervisor who filed suit against Goodyear Tire Rubber Co. in Gadsden, Alabama, after she realized men working in the same position were making more money. She had worked their almost 19 years before she became aware of the pay discrimination. Since winning her original Supreme Court case, she has been an advocate for fair pay, working to close the pay gap by ending discrimination in the workplace.
The new legislation is a landmark step toward ending pay discrimination, allowing suits to be filed years later as long as the alleged pay disparity is continuing. It also amends the 1964 Civil Rights Act and applies to discrimination based on factors such as race, religion, national origin, disability or age. Furthermore, a new provision to current law could allow certain family members of an aggrieved employee to file a pay discrimination claim if they were also affected by the alleged discrimination.
According to ABC News, President Obama stated, "In signing this bill today, I intend to send a clear message that making our economy work means making sure it works for everyone. There are no second class citizens in our workplaces, and that it’s not just unfair and illegal – it's bad for business – to pay someone less because of their gender, age, race, ethnicity, religion or disability. And that justice isn’t about some abstract legal theory, or footnote in a casebook – it’s about how our laws affect the daily lives and daily realities of people, their ability to make a living and care for their families and achieve their goals."
Last year the Census Bureau estimated women still receive about 78 cents for every dollar that men get for doing the same jobs. That equates to $210,000 less for women over a 35-year, full time work life, according to an August 2008 study from Institute for Women's Policy Research.
With the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act now signed, and the pending Paycheck Fairness Act, which could allow for unlimited punitive damage awards, it’s more important than ever for companies to monitor and manage their pay practices. As a leading provider of compensation software and solutions, Berkshire experts advise employers to perform an internal
salary equity analysis at least annually to identify any pay disparities. Our consultants are available to analyze and interpret your data so you can be proactive in managing your pay practices. Berkshire also offers
BALANCEpay, a salary equity analysis software that makes running pay analyses easy and manageable. Investing in a pay analysis tool for ongoing monitoring is a fundamental step toward safeguarding your company from pay-related lawsuits and claims. You also have the option of working directly with an expert consultant to create a plan that will not only help you measure and maintain fair pay, but also engineer employee performance, desired outcomes, work culture, and values.