Woman Who Inspired Anti-Discrimination Law Will Speak At Agnes Scott

The woman who inspired one of President Obama's key pieces of legislation -- the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act -- will speak at 7 p.m. Tuesday, March 6, at Agnes Scott College.

Ledbetter will talk about her new book, ”Grace and Grit: My Fight for Equal Pay and Fairness at Goodyear and Beyond.”

The New York Times explained the significance of Ledbetter's case:

Lilly M. Ledbetter discovered when she was nearing retirement that her male colleagues were earning much more than she was. A jury found her employer, the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company plant in Gadsden, Ala., guilty of pay discrimination, in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

But in a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court threw out the case, ruling that she should have filed her suit within 180 days of the date that Goodyear first paid her less than her peers. ... Courts around the country cited the decision hundreds of times as a reason for rejecting lawsuits claiming discrimination based on race, sex, age and disability, without regard to the underlying merits of the individual cases.

On Jan. 29, 2009, President Barack Obama affixed his signature to the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, his first official bill as president. The legislation expanded workers’ rights to sue in this kind of case, and relaxed the statute of limitations, restarting the six-month clock every time the worker receives a paycheck.

She will speak in Gaines Chapel, in Presser Hall. The event is free and open to the public. No ticket is required. The Georgia Center for the Book and the Decatur Library are co-sponsors of the event.