The Equal Pay Enforcement Act became law in Wisconsin in July 2009 and was written much in response to the Supreme Court decision of Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. In this court case, Lilly Ledbetter, a Goodyear employee, was being paid less than her male coworkers and decided to sue Goodyear in a case that proceeded to the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court ruled in favor of Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., stating that the statute of limitations, or the time frame in which Ledbetter could sue for compensation, had ended.

This court case decision was the driving force behind the Equal Pay Enforcement Act, which allowed for quicker court dates to take place in the Wisconsin State Circuit Court rather than wait longer for a federal court date. Recently, Gov. Scott Walker signed a bill into law that repealed and amended certain provisions of the act in Wisconsin.

One such effect of this repeal does make it more difficult for workers who feel discriminated against to get their day in court. Also, this new legislation states that persons who have been discriminated against in employment are no longer entitled to be awarded compensatory and punitive damages. If the defendant were found guilty of discrimination, the circuit court would be allowed to decide how much in compensatory and punitive damages the employer must pay. This would be at maximum between $50,000 and $300,000 depending on the number of employees the defendant employed.
The concept of having defendants pay compensatory and punitive damages to a plaintiff is traditionally done to first compensate the plaintiff for any loss they may have suffered in the past, and second, to deter the defendant and others from engaging in similar behavior. This provision of the act was repealed, which now makes it less financially damaging for companies to engage in discriminatory acts.

An interesting study that was conducted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows what effect the Equal Pay Enforcement Act may have had on the progression of equal pay for women. The study shows how much women made in a week compared with men in the United States and then compared those national numbers to Wisconsin. The study found that Wisconsin women made less than the average American woman every year until 2010, the first full year in which the Equal Pay Enforcement Act took effect.

However, it is now impossible to completely verify that the Act was the sole reason for women becoming closer to earning the same as men in Wisconsin. The timing of this Act and the results that followed after its passage set the stage for this argument to be made.
Without harsher penalties in the workplace to deter employers from discriminating, we will likely see a decrease in equal pay between men and women and an increase in discriminatory practices.

Jared Mehre ([email protected]) is a freshman majoring in political science.