Senate Democrats Hold Hearing on Pay Equity for Women

CNSNews.com
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
By Fred Lucas, Staff Writer

Capitol Hill (CNSNews.com) – Lilly Ledbetter, a former Goodyear Tire plant manager who became a cause célèbre among advocates of gender pay-equity issues, told the Senate Judiciary Committee Tuesday that she has become a second-class citizen. At one point in the hearing, the committee chairman echoed a line from an ‘Obama for President’ television ad, criticizing Republican presidential candidate John McCain’s position on the issue. “My retirement is based on what I earned,” Ledbetter told the panel. “This means I’m treated like a second-class citizen all of my life because that never changes.” Ledbetter lost a pay discrimination lawsuit against Goodyear after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that she filed the complaint too late. She retired after working 19 years at the Goodyear plant in Gadsden, Ala. The high court said that, under the 1964 Civil Rights Act, an employee must sue within 180 days regarding alleged pay discrimination. Speaking to a group of mostly Democratic senators – some of whom were quick to make electioneering statements – Ledbetter had a sympathetic audience. Senate Democrats introduced the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Restoration Act this year. If passed, the law would extend the limit on how long an employee can wait before suing an employer for pay discrimination. The bill was stopped by a Republican-led filibuster. Of the two presidential candidates, Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) voted for cloture so the bill could come up for a final vote, while Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) was not present during the vote but voiced his opposition. Echoing a line from an Obama campaign ad, Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) referred to McCain, saying, “One senior senator, who didn’t show up to vote on the act, said quote ‘women just need more education and job training.’” Ledbetter said she was “strongly offended” by the McCain statement and that she frequently took continuing education courses while working for Goodyear. [To read the entire story, go to: http://www.cnsnews.com/public/content/article.aspx?RsrcID=36189 ]