President Joe Biden on Wednesday signed into law a measure to bar enforcement of pre-dispute nondisclosure agreements (NDAs) that prohibit victims from disclosing sexual assault and harassment on the job.
Such pre-dispute NDAs are often signed by employees or contractors as a condition of employment. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), who introduced the bill in July, cited massage parlors and assisted living facilities as examples of places where mandatory NDAs have been used.
The legislation does not apply to NDAs signed after a dispute arises, including those signed as part of settlements in sexual assault or harassment lawsuits.
It also does not cover other workplace misconduct, such as discrimination based on age, gender, race, or religion.
‘Historic Day’
A bipartisan group of House representatives said it was “a historic day for labor law and women’s rights in America.”The Speak Out Act had passed the Senate unanimously in September and passed the House on a 315–109 vote.
“Forced NDAs punish the survivor and protect the perpetrator who is set free to abuse others again and again. With the signing of the Speak Out Act, we will now hold abusers accountable and change the culture of the workplace,” reads a statement from Reps. Lois Frankel (D-Fla.), Ken Buck (R-Colo.), Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.), David Cicilline (D-R.I.), Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), Cheri Bustos (D-Ill.), and Burgess Owens (R-Utah), who are among the cosponsors of the bill.
“Employers who were used to hiding their dirty little secrets will be forced to stop toxic workplaces, sexual harassment, and assault before it happens. This should lead to safer and more productive workplaces and civic society for employers, employees, and consumers.”
The bill’s signing comes after Biden, in early March, signed into law legislation that stopped victims of sexual misconduct in the workplace from having to settle cases through forced arbitration. Instead, they would have the right to sue, join a class action lawsuit, or appeal through the courts.
Gillibrand said she is working with South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) to pass similar laws related to age discrimination in the workplace.