Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to the Foxx amendment. The amendment proposed by my colleague from North Carolina would weaken the essential civil rights protections that are the very purpose of the Protecting Older Workers Against Discrimination Act. The goal of the bill we are voting on today is to treat workers who are discriminated against based on age, the very same way we treat workers who are discriminated against because of their race, gender, national origin, or religion. In our world of rising costs, shrinking pensions and retirement savings, and longer life spans, many workers must work longer in order to be able to live out their retirement years in dignity. That, in addition to the reasons of basic fairness, is why the Protecting Older Workers Against Discrimination Act is so important. This bill would apply the same burden of proof to age discrimination claims that are currently applied to other forms of employment discrimination and retaliation prohibited by the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and other statutes. The Foxx amendment would weaken these protections by creating two different burdens of proof; one, for proving an act of discrimination, and a tougher burden of proving retaliation against a worker who has reported that discrimination. The Foxx amendment would actually make it harder for an employee to secure relief from employer retaliation under the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as well as other civil rights statutes.…”