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Obama signs equal-pay bill




WASHINGTON (AP) — President Obama is singing the praises of newly passed legislation making it easier for workers to sue for discrimination on the job.
At a White House bill-signing ceremony, he said the measure upholds the principle that "we are all created equal" and that each person deserves an equal opportunity.

The measure is known as the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act. And it is named for a woman who said she didn't become aware of a pay discrepancy until she neared the end of her career at a Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. plant.


FROM THE OVAL: Obama signs 'Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act'

Ledbetter was present for the ceremony. The law effectively overturns a Supreme Court decision that had strictly limited workers' ability to file such suits.

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Obama signed the bill during an East Room ceremony, a move that effectively ends a 2007 Supreme Court decision that said workers had only 180 days to file a pay-discrimination lawsuit. Obama and fellow Democrats campaigned hard against the court decision and promised to pass legislation that would give workers more time to sue their employers for past discrimination.

Obama's entrance in the East Room was met with hearty cheers from the many labor and women's groups represented there. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, the first woman speaker in the history of Congress, and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, were present. Clinton went further than any woman previously in her campaign for the presidency, although she ultimately lost the Democratic Party competition to Obama.

"This bill will be a big step forward not just for women, but for families," the White House earlier said in a statement announcing the bill signing. "It is not only a measure of fairness, but can be the difference for families struggling to make ends meet during these difficult times."

The law is named for Ledbetter, who said she didn't become aware of a pay discrepancy until she neared the end of her 19-year career at a Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. plant in Gadsden, Ala. She sued, but the Supreme Court said she missed her chance.

The court said in a 5-4 ruling that a person must file a claim of discrimination within 180 days of a company's initial decision to pay a worker less than it pays another worker doing the same job. Under the new bill, given final passage in Congress this week, every new discriminatory paycheck would extend the statute of limitations for another 180 days.

Congress attempted to update the law to extend the time, but the Bush White House and Senate Republicans blocked the legislation in the last session of Congress

Opponents contended the legislation would gut the statute of limitations, encourage lawsuits and be a boon to trial lawyers. They also argued that employees could wait to file claims in hopes of reaping larger damage awards. The bill does not change current law limiting back pay for claimants to two years.

Obama, who took office on Jan. 20, spoke strongly in support of it during his campaign and the Democratic-controlled Congress moved it to the top of the agenda for the new session that opened this month.

Obama aides said Ledbetter would attend the bill signing ceremony in the East Room, followed by a separate reception with first lady Michelle Obama.

The Ledbetter bill focuses on pay and other workplace discrimination against women. The Census Bureau last year estimated that women still receive only about 78 cents for every dollar that men get for doing equivalent jobs. But the measure, which amends the 1964 Civil Rights Act, also applies to discrimination based on factors such as race, religion, national origin, disability or age.

Ledbetter was a tireless spokeswoman for the law and Obama's candidacy. She addressed the Democratic National Convention in Denver last year and traveled to Washington aboard Obama's train for the inauguration ceremonies. The law will not help Ledbetter recover any money; instead, she said she owed it to other women to champion the cause.

"There will be a far richer reward if we secure fair pay," she said in Denver. "For our children and grandchildren, so that no one will ever again experience the discrimination that I did.