FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 22, 2018

Existing Laws, Good Employers Already Fairly Compensate Workers

Progressives promote yet another make-believe narrative.
Fewer women could end-up being hired.
#Unfair2Employers

Providence, RI– Progressive-extremists are once again advancing a false narrative: This time suggesting that Rhode Island employers are discriminatory and bigoted in their compensatory practices.

The divisive legislation, H7427 and S2475, would lead to undue legal dangers for job-producers by creating vague new mandates for how employers should determine wages for workers, has been named the Progressive Land of Make Believe Bad Bill of the Week by the Rhode Island Center for Freedom & Prosperity, which has long advocated against unnecessarily worsening the already hostile business climate in the Ocean State.

The so-called “Fair Employment Practices” legislation, in seeking to address a problem that does not actually exist, is actually #Unfair2Employers. Supporters, who have put forth no evidence that existing laws are inadequate, pretend their concerns are about ‘gender pay equity’; but the legislation would actually define multiple politically-correct new classes of potential victims as well as severe new penalties on companies.

The proposed language would also blur the current law’s clear definition of equal pay for “equal work” on the “same operations” … to a much more vague concept of equal pay for “comparable work” under “similar conditions” … likely spurring frivolous lawsuits by employees against employers.

“Businesses are at the tipping point – and jobs are at stake – if our state imposes more burdens and legal peril on the private sector. This progressive vision of equal outcomes for everyone could actually backfire, as businesses may end up hiring fewer women to avoid legal action,” said Mike Stenhouse, the Center’s CEO. “Incredibly, this legislation assumes the guilt of hard-working employers in our state; it is a dream-come-true for law-suit minded lawyers, but will be a nightmare for the business community.”

The Center’s post also includes a video commentary from Stenhouse as well as a link to a Prager U. video that discusses U.S. Department of Labor data, which debunks the 77 cents on the dollar gender-wage-gap myth.

Other Bad Bills: An interactive table of other progressive bad bill candidates, as well as posts and video commentary on previously tabbed “progressive bad bills of the week” can be found at RIFreedom.org/Bills.