By Collin Roth Mary Burkes Lie of the Day: Scott Walker Left Wisconsin Without An Equal Pay Law Published: 7:17 AM October 23, 2014 CLAIM: Gov Scott Walker left Wisconsin without an equal pay law protecting women from gender discrimination in their paycheck. FACTS: Mary Burke and her allies at the Greater Wisconsin Committee have made a great deal out of the repeal of the 2009 Act 20, better known as the Equal Pay Enforcement Act. The Greater Wisconsin Committee is currently running this ad targeting Gov. Walker on the repeal of the Equal Pay Enforcement Act. On its face, it sounds pretty bad. Why would Gov. Walker and the legislature want to repeal an Equal Pay law? Do they support pay discrimination? Of course not. Scott Manley of the Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce recently broke down the facts about the repeal of Act 20, what it means, and more importantly what it doesnt mean. Fact: Women have enjoyed protection from wage discrimination under the Wisconsin Fair Employment Act (WFEA) for decades. The repeal of Act 20 did absolutely nothing to change the fact that it’s illegal for employers to engage in wage discrimination on the basis of gender. Fact: Women may file a claim for wage discrimination in Wisconsin, and are entitled under the law to receive back pay in the amount they should have been paid if discrimination is proved. The repeal of Act 20 did absolutely nothing to change this. Fact: Act 20 did nothing to establish an equal pay mandate in Wisconsin law – current law already prohibited wage discrimination based on gender. Fact: What Act 20 did establish was a means to make discrimination lawsuits more profitable for trial lawyers by allowing plaintiffs to seek punitive damages on top of the other legal remedies available under current law. Fact: Women remain entitled to sue for punitive damages for alleged acts of wage discrimination under federal law, despite the repeal of Act 20. Even the Milwaukee Journal Sentinels PolitiFact wasnt buying Mary Burkes lie about the repeal of the Equal Pay Act. Earlier this year, PolitiFact gave Mary Burke a False rating for saying the repeal left women in Wisconsin without protections from gender discrimination. Burke said that Walker’s repeal of a 2009 law has left Wisconsin as just one of five states without an equal pay law protecting women from gender discrimination in their paycheck. But while Walker reversed an attempt to toughen up Wisconsin law, its protections against gender discrimination in workplace pay date back decades. The governor’s 2012 action left those in place, albeit without tougher penalties for employers. We rate Burke’s claim False. If pay discrimination was illegal in Wisconsin for decades, then what was Act 20 really all about when it was passed in 2009? The answer: It was about lining the pockets of trial lawyers by making discrimination lawsuits more profitable. After all, if Wisconsin women were now subject to pay discrimination as Mary Burke and her liberal allies claim, wouldnt they be able to come up with a single case in which a women was a victim without any recourse found in current law? The answer is, they cannot produce one. But Im guessing they can find a boatload of trial lawyers who are upset with Gov. Walker for curbing their profits. Editors Note: RightWisconsin will be bringing you a Lie of the Day each day in order to give you the facts and ammunition to combat the talking points and lies from Mary Burke and her allies. This effort is so that we can arm you with the truth so that you might be able to answer questions from voters. READ MORE HERE Mary Burkes Lie of the Day: Scott Walker Raised Taxes on 140,000 Working Families RightWisconsin Mary Burkes Lie of the Day: The Deepest Per-Student Education Cuts in The Nation RightWisconsin Mary Burkes Lie of the Day: Wisconsin is Dead Last in Midwest Job Growth RightWisconsin
Posted on: Fri, 24 Oct 2014 15:27:29 +0000