Senate passes bill ending forced arbitration in sexual misconduct cases

The Senate on Thursday passed legislation ending the use of forced arbitration in lawsuits involving sexual assault and harassment claims. 

The bill passed the chamber by a voice vote, days after it passed the House in a 335-97 vote, capping off a years-long debate on Capitol Hill sparked by the #MeToo movement. 

The legislation is now headed to President Biden’s desk, where he’s expected to sign it. 

The bill would ensure that people have the option of bringing a case alleging sexual assault or harassment in court, instead of being forced into arbitration proceedings that are often conducted in private and confidential hearings. It would do so by voiding clauses in agreements, such as employment contracts, that require disputes to go through the arbitration process. 

“[We] have been working to stop the practice of someone signing an employment contract, having a sexual harassment or assault program in the workplace and being forced into arbitration that’s skewed for the employer against the employee for these things to be hidden,” said Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), who has spearheaded legislation with Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.). 

“I hope it will bring about the reform that we’re all hoping for, to make it harder to hide these problems in the workforce, easier to get justice without gaming the system,” he added. 

Gillibrand noted that the bill was five years in the making. 

“This bill represents one of the most significant workplace reforms in American history. It will help us fix a broken system that protects perpetrators and corporations and end the days of silencing survivors,” Gillibrand said. 

Passage of the bill comes more than four years after the launch of the “Me Too” movement in late 2017, which prompted many people to publicly share their experiences of sexual harassment and assault, including against some members of Congress at the time.  

Though Congress passed legislation reforming its own ethics rules, the legislation enacted by Congress would change the way private companies handle sexual assault and harassment cases. 

Quick passage in the Senate wasn’t guaranteed. 

Senate Majority Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) initially said that he wanted to bring up the bill as soon as this week. But Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), a member of GOP leadership, indicated on Tuesday negotiations were ongoing. Schumer, Ernst, Gillibrand and Graham met this week to hash out how to get the bill passed. 

Ernst said that as part of the agreement, they decided to come to the Senate floor before the voice vote and stress that the bill was not meant to be more broadly applied to leapfrogging arbitration on other cases unrelated to a sexual misconduct. 

“I sat down earlier this week with the majority leader the lead Republican sponsor of the bill … we agreed to come to the floor and ensure the congressional intent of the ending forced arbitration and sexual harassment act of 2022 is crystal clear,” Ernst said. 

“During our meeting my colleagues agreed with the me that this bill should not be the catalyst for destroying pre-dispute arbitration agreements in all employment matters,” she added.