Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act

The Equal Pay Act is a statute that requires that women be paid the same as men who perform the same work. The Equal Pay Act was passed in the 1970’s as an amendment to Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination against minorities. Texas passed its version of Title VII,  Texas’

Last August, Gov. Rick Perry vetoed a statute that would have amended the state version of Title VII the way Congress amended Title VII to allow women to sue for discrimination in their pay. See my posts here. The state version of Title VII is known as the Texas Commission on Human Rights Act.

So, the proposed bill vetoed by Gov. Perry was the subject of lobbying efforts by some retailers.  The bill, passed in both houses of the Legislature, would have allowed women and others to file suit when they learn of pay discrimination.  Now, they must file suit even though they may not learn of a pay

Lilly Ledbetter sued her employer for pay disparities which had occurred over years.   She worked for Goodyear Tire and Rubber for decades.  She sued based on the Equal Pay Act, a federal statute.  She lost.  The U.S. Supreme Court found that she sued too late.  The statute of limitations required her to sue within