Obama to sign his first Congressional bill

It was announced by the Associated Press today that the Ledbetter bill, which will make it easier for women to sue for pay discrimination, has passed Congress and is on its way to President Obama's desk. The creation of this bill is in light of a Supreme Court case thrown out in 2007 in which Lily Ledbetter sued for pay discrimination after finding out that after 19 years on the job, she was purposefully paid less than her male peers at Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co's plant in Georgia. The case was moot by the time it reached the Supreme Court since the plantiff only had 180 days after the company decided to pay her less money to file a complaint.

Under the new law, women will have 180 days to file a complaint once a paycheck (of the discrimintorary value) is issued. This gives women the chance to file complaints years after they began to be paid less for their job.

While this bill sounds fine and dandy, the question remains -- when will women make as much money for a job as a man? Women in the U.S. currently make $.22 less per dollar than a man. This is a double standard to the Civil Rights bill of 1964 and its subsequent titles; nonetheless, women continue to be discriminated against and there is really no end in sight. Even in the 21st century when it seems like the U.S. is the closest it will ever come to being an even playing field for both genders.

The significance of this bill is rectified, yet it lacks significance at the same time. The right to be able to sue for pay discrimination is not advancing the civil rights ideals set forth by our 20th century forefathers. It's shameful this is all Congress can offer us. It may be a step in the right direction, but not until every gender and race can be guaranteed equal pay, this will continue to be a problem.

President Obama is scheduled to sign his first piece of legislation on Thursday. For more information on this story (and it's back story), you can read the AP article here: Congress sends Obama pay discrimination bill.