Write to the Judiciary Committee to urge them to move workers' rights bills forward
Massachusetts workers deserve to work free of mistreatment and free of barriers to reporting mistreatment.
Specifically, nondisclosure agreements, or NDAs, silence victims and enable serial abusers. Currently, the majority of employers ignore reports of discrimination or vilify victims to avoid liability according to landmark research on the effectiveness of anti-discrimination law in the book Rights on Trial. In the rare case a target files a complaint with the EEOC, the mounting legal fees encourage complainants to take a settlement, knowing the courts typically favor the employer who has more resources and relationships in the court.
While most targets want organizational change, consequences for the perpetrator, and their jobs reinstated, employers generally give employees a median settlement of $30,000 in exchange for their silence — a gag clause or NDA. That's hardly a way to change the status quo that's kept white men in the majority of power positions since Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Massachusetts is behind other states when it comes to addressing serial abuse. "New York is not alone. A growing number of other states have also passed laws that significantly restrict or prohibit employers’ use of NDAs when resolving claims of sexual harassment. California, Illinois, Maryland, Nevada, New Jersey, Oregon, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, and Washington have all enacted legislation that restrict an employer’s use of NDAs. California, Nevada, and New Jersey now prohibit NDAs altogether when resolving a sexual harassment claim. These new laws do not restrict the right of the parties to agree to keep confidential the terms of a settlement agreement, the amount paid, or the fact that such an agreement exists. Rather, the laws target the parties’ agreement not to disclose the underlying harassment allegations."
Opposition will claim NDAs protect victims, but that's false — a claim to protect power. Victims can CHOOSE to tell their story or not.
Fill out the form to write to the Judiciary Committee in support of the following bills:
Non-disclosure agreements:
H1885, An Act strengthening sexual harassment and discrimination policies in the Commonwealth
S1019/H1886, An Act concerning nondisclosure agreements
S1020/H1887, An Act concerning nondisclosure agreements relative to sexual harassment and discrimination
S1021, An Act concerning nondisclosure agreements
Other bills:
H1641, An Act removing barriers to justice in the workplace. Extends the time from 300 days to 3 years for reporting workplace discrimination complaints.
S955, An Act prohibiting the use of public funds to pay awards, fines, or settlements in sexual harassment or assault cases
S1089, An Act to protect unpaid interns, volunteers, and independent contractors from sexual harassment and other forms of discrimination
