Statement of the Honorable Henry C. “Hank” Johnson, Jr. on the Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Executive Order

The Administration announced that President Obama signed the Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Executive Order on July 31. Among other things, the Order will prohibit federal contractors from using forced arbitration clauses in employment contracts involving civil and sexual assault and harassment disputes. The Executive Order directs companies with federal contracts of $1 million or more not to require their employees to enter into predispute arbitration agreements for disputes arising out of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act or from torts related to sexual assault or harassment (except when valid contracts already exist).This builds on a policy already passed by Congress and successfully implemented at the Department of Defense, the largest federal contracting agency, and will help improve contractors’ compliance with labor laws. Congressman Hank Johnson, GA-04, ranking member of the House Judiciary subcommittee on Regulatory Reform, Commercial and Antitrust Law, issued the following statement supporting the action:

"Yesterday, the President signed the Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Executive Order requiring federal contractors to give employees their day in court.

"The President’s Executive Order prohibits the use of forced arbitration agreements in federal employment contracts for disputes involving civil rights, sexual assault, and sexual harassment.
Forced arbitration is a private system that is fundamentally inferior to the American civil justice system.

"Unlike America’s civil justice system that was developed through centuries of jurisprudence, forced arbitration does not provide important procedural guarantees of fairness and due process that are the hallmarks of courts of law.

"Behind closed doors and shrouded in secrecy, forced arbitration enables employers to conceal wrongdoing from public scrutiny and to undermine our rights.

"Since 2007, I have championed the Arbitration Fairness Act, which would eliminate forced arbitration clauses in employment, consumer, and civil rights cases. I applaud President Obama for undertaking this important initiative to protect workers. This Order is an important first step in ending forced arbitration.

"Americans deserve better than private, unaccountable tribunals.

"Although I encourage the President to do more to protect all Americans against forced arbitration, every journey begins with a single step. Equal access to justice for all is not an aspiration; it is a guarantee to all Americans.

"We can do better, which is why I stand ready to work with the Administration and my colleagues to enact the Arbitration Fairness Act and to summarily end forced arbitration in employment, consumer, antitrust, and civil rights disputes."

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