Many women in this country have a complicated relationship with money.  Research tells us that women fear becoming bag ladies, even when they are not even close.  Women are less likely than men to initiate salary increase negotiations, and whey they do they’re labeled as bitches.  Overall, they are less likely to be socialized in […]

I met Julie Vogtman when we were both summer associates at a DC law firm, and I was thrilled to reconnect with her recently at a Dupont Circle Starbucks.  After chatting about our holidays and seeing pictures of her adorable 10-month-old daughter, we talked about the great work that she and others are doing at […]

I attended the Supreme Court’s oral arguments on Young v. UPS earlier this month and was very excited to talk with Plaintiff Peggy Young’s lawyer, Sharon Gustafson, about the case.  Sharon will be among the speakers at an upcoming panel I am hosting, sponsored by the Women’s Bar Association and Sanford Heisler Kimpel. Kate: For the […]

I am working with the D.C. Women’s Bar Association to host a panel discussion on January 29 about pregnancy discrimination and Young v. UPS, which was argued before the Supreme Court earlier this week.  (Blogger’s note: for more information on the case, check out Tuesday’s blogpost. Panelists will include a lawyer representing Peggy Young; a lawyer advising companies […]

As one of my colleagues wrote earlier this fall, a woman should not have to choose between having a job and having a baby.  Laura Brown agrees.  With Keira McNett, Laura founded First Shift Justice Project earlier this year to protect workers in their “first shift”—their paid employment—so they can work the “second shift”—providing unpaid […]

Growing up I loved watching The Mary Tyler Moore Show on Nick-at-Nite.  Mary Richards, the show’s protagonist, was a single woman in her early 30s working as the associate producer of a nightly news show in Minneapolis in the early 1970s.  In one episode, she learns that she is making $50 less per week than […]

As I’ve noted previously on this blog, it is important for workers to understand how forced arbitration—a seemingly innocuous procedural issue—undermines their civil rights. Earlier this week I talked with Roberta Steele, Program Director at the National Employment Lawyers Association.  Roberta’s work focuses on issues that prevent workers from having full and equal access to […]

Just before Labor Day, whitehouse.gov released a Chart of the Week illustrating that, among college graduates four years after graduation, women earn less than men in nearly every field of study.  A salary gap among recent college graduates is disturbing for two reasons. First, it suggests that women are earning less than men right away—even […]

In “Is there a legal case for work-life balance?” published last week in Fortune, Caroline Fairchild raises the theory that federal anti-discrimination laws may mandate that workplaces have work-life balance. As she correctly notes, U.S. employment laws prohibit company policies that disproportionately affect one group unless the policies have a “business necessity.”  For example, an employer […]

A few days ago, when Kate K wrote about Hobby Lobby, she also mentioned forced arbitration.  This is a cause I’m particularly passionate about.  My focus comes from seeing so many of my clients forced to make an impossible decision.  Whatever those that support forced arbitration may like to pretend, employees do not have equal bargaining power with […]