Russ Feingold: “I am a cosponsor of the Fair Pay Restoration Act, legislation that protects American workers from pay discrimination…”

“I am a cosponsor of the Fair Pay Restoration Act, legislation that protects American workers from pay discrimination, and I am glad the Senate is debating it. This bill is designed to overrule an incorrect court decision that cut off one woman's efforts to seek recourse for pay discrimination she experienced at the hands of her employer. As one of the few female supervisors at her company's plant, Lilly Ledbetter was paid substantially less than male employees in the same position who performed the same duties. This information about unequal pay was kept confidential. It was only after Ms. Ledbetter received an anonymous note revealing the higher salaries of other managers who were male that Ms. Ledbetter recognized that she was being paid less because she was a woman. Ms. Ledbetter's case went to trial and a jury awarded her full damages and back pay. Last year, in a sharply divided opinion, the Supreme Court ruled that Ms. Ledbetter had filed her lawsuit too long after her employer originally decided to give her unequal pay.”