Both Sides Lobby Missouri Gov. on Workplace Discrimination Bill

Article

Several Missouri lawyers and civil rights groups are urging Gov. Jay Nixon to veto a bill that would change the legal standard workers must meet when they file discrimination lawsuits against former employers.

In letters released this week to The Associated Press, the groups ask Nixon to veto legislation which they say would give employers less incentive to prevent discrimination. Nixon has indicated he is opposed to the legislation and will take action on it Friday.

The legislation would require workers who claim discrimination in wrongful firing lawsuits to prove that bias was a “motivating” factor, not just a “contributing” factor as is now the case. It also would limit punitive damages, ranging from $50,000 to $300,000, depending on the size of the company. Similar limits would apply to whistleblowers who report incidents of discrimination to state authorities, if they sue their employer for retaliating against them.

Nixon on April 27 issued a statement saying the legislation would undermine Missouri Human Rights Act and roll back decades of progress on civil rights. That statement came after Nixon had received letters urging him to veto – or, in some cases, to sign – the legislation.

Nimrod Chapel, Jr., the president of the Jefferson City chapter of the NAACP called the pending legislation a form of “Jim Crow era laws” in his letter. In an interview, Chapel said he opposes the caps on awards because he believes the juries should decide awards based on the seriousness of a discriminatory offense.

“To put a cap on those allows a company to basically quantify how much discrimination they can afford,” he said.

Business groups also have sent letters to Nixon urging that he sign the measure into law. They say it aligns state law with federal statutes and will help the state’s economy. Daniel Mehan, the president of the Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said that the state risks being labeled as “anti-employer” if Nixon does veto the pending legislation.

“In Missouri courts, the employer is guilty until proven innocent,” Mehan said. “Missouri must change the litigation environment to encourage businesses to invest and stay.”

The pending legislation is one of six pro-business changes that the Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry has lobbied legislators to make this session.

St. Louis attorney Donna Harper, a former prosecutor for the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in federal courts, said in a letter to Nixon that the legislation would not put Missouri in line with other states or federal law. She said the bill’s supporters “simply want Missouri courts to be off-limits to Missouri’s workers” and to force people who have suffered discrimination to bring claims in federal court.

The Missouri Municipal League, which represents numerous cities, said in a letter to Nixon that the limits in the legislation would allow “legitimate” discrimination disputes to be aired while giving businesses additional financial security. Executive Director Dan Ross wrote that the limits would correct an overreach by the Missouri courts, which set the “contributing factor” standard in 2007.

“This trend, if not reversed, will cause long-term harm to the public and private sector business climate in this state and deter your genuine efforts to attract and retain good-paying, family supporting jobs,” Ross wrote.

Discrimination lawsuits bill is SB188.