Madam Speaker, I rise to speak enthusiastically in support of my bill, the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act. Five years ago, The Washington Post published a story that shocked me to my core. Madam…
Madam Speaker, I rise to speak enthusiastically in support of my bill, the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act.
Five years ago, The Washington Post published a story that shocked me to my core. Madam Speaker, 69,000 women were suing Sterling, Inc., for sexual harassment, sexual assault, and sexual discrimination. Sterling is the parent company of Kay and Jared Jewelers.
And, yes, I did say 69,000. I had to double-check that over and over--not 69, not 6,900--69,000 women.
``If you didn't do what he wanted with him, you wouldn't get your''-- preferred--``store or raise.'' That is what Sanya Douglas, a former employee, testified.
``A boozy, no-spouses-allowed `sex fest,' where attendance was mandatory and women were aggressively pursued, groped, and harassed.'' That is how meetings at the company were described.
``You were meat, being shopped.'' That is how a former employee described her workplace.
Each story was more disturbing than the story before it: managers demanding sexual acts in exchange for employment benefits; company events where women were expected to undress publicly. In one story, a former employee attended an overnight meeting where she woke up with her underwear pushed down to her ankles, a manager raping her.
This type of sexual perverseness in the workplace went on for years, and it all stayed secret. And the reason for that secrecy? Because of one single legal clause hidden deep down in these women's employment paperwork, a clause that says if a claim arises between an employer and an employee, it must go to arbitration, and taking a case like this to court is prohibited.
My bill would make it illegal to enforce agreements that mandate third-party arbitration, which is a type of legal dispute resolution that is conducted behind closed doors and often favors the employer.
Seems simple, right? Well, that one tiny clause protected a company of abusers and silenced those 69,000 women just at Sterling, Inc. That is just one single company we are talking about.
But the stories go on, and the bad actors aren't just at workplaces. While 60 million--that is 60 million--Americans are working under these forced arbitration clauses through their employers, the real number of people impacted by this incredibly common pitfall is huge. Many more millions of Americans have signed away their rights through property leases, ride-share applications, moving companies, nursing homes, grocery deliveries.
That terms and conditions box that we have all simply checked off after downloading an app or hiring a service might just have an arbitration clause hiding in it, ready to strip away your right to go to court if you have been sexually harassed or sexually assaulted and you choose to go to court.
While some companies have already eliminated this abusive practice-- thank you to them--it is time to do away with these legal traps for good.
The Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act will invalidate any forced arbitration clause in any contract or agreement in the case of sexual assault or harassment.
And I am proud to say that my bill has widespread support among Republicans and Democrats over at the Senate and here at the House.
I thank those that have helped us get here today. I thank Pramila Jayapal, Morgan Griffith, Ken Buck, David Cicilline, Chairman Nadler, Senators Gillibrand, Lindsey Graham and Dick Durbin, and our fearless champion on this, Gretchen Carlson.
I urge my colleagues to support this bill, and I look forward to the day when our sexual assault survivors can have their day in court.
Madam Speaker, I am a proud co-lead of the amendment with Ranking Member Ken Buck of Colorado.
This amendment is the result of good faith negotiations on an issue raised by Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee during debate on my bill, the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act.
We promised them that we would work to address those issues, and we did. I am glad we could reach an agreement to address their concerns about State and local laws.
This amendment and the underlying bill are a testament to what we can accomplish when we listen to each other and trust that we are working toward a common goal. In this case, that goal is protecting survivors of sexual assault and harassment and giving them a choice on how to pursue justice.
Madam Speaker, I thank Congressman Buck for offering this amendment and working with us to address the concerns of his colleagues. I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support this amendment.