The Supreme Court dealt a decisive blow to many pending pay discrimination suits with its May decision in Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co. Justice Alito’s opinion starts running the 180-day charge period for Title VII suits when the employer makes the initial decision that leads to pay discrimination–even if that decision leads to years of unequal pay.
That was the case with Lilly Ledbetter. She didn’t find out her employer was paying her less than her male counterparts until she was nearing retirement, meaning her claim was time-barred by about 19 years. She argued that because the initial decision to pay her less than male employees led to lower paychecks throughout the course of her career, the statute of limitations should be restarted each time she was paid.
