Congress passes sexual harassment bill

The Senate approved legislation to alter federal employment law to ban forced arbitration for sexual harassment cases. The House passed the bill last week with strong bipartisan support in a 335-97 vote. The White House previously announced support for the legislation, and President Joe Biden is expected to sign it soon. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., originally introduced the bill with Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., in 2017 in response to the #MeToo movement.

What does it do? Roughly 60 million Americans have a contract that requires anyone who submits a claim of sexual assault or harassment in their workplace to work it out with the alleged perpetrator in private arbitration. This process often keeps misconduct allegations private. The new bill bans the practice and nullifies all existing arbitration clauses. It will still allow workers to opt for arbitration if they prefer. Former Fox News anchor Gretchen Carlson accused the late network CEO Roger Ailes of sexual assault in 2017 and testified often to support Gillibrand’s bill. After the Senate passed it on Thursday, Carlson said, “Hashtags can galvanize, but legislation is the only thing that lasts.”

Dig deeper: Read my report in The Stew about another bill Gillibrand and lawmakers have proposed involving sexual assault prosecution in the military.