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President Obama Signs the Franken Amendments into Law



Today, President Obama signed the 2010 Defense Appropriations bill into law.  Significantly, the bill included the so-called “Franken Amendments” which requires all contractors with more than $1 million in revenues from using mandatory arbitration provisions in their employment agreements.  Specifically, military contractors may not:    


(1) enter into any agreement with any of its employees or independent contractors that requires, as a ccondition of employment, that the employee or independent contractor agree to resolve through arbitration any claim under title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 or any tort related to or arising out of sexual assault or harassment, including assault and battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress, false imprisonment, or negligent hiring, supervision, or retention; or
(2) take any action to enforce any provision of an existing agreement with an employee or independent contractor that mandates that the employee or independent contractor resolve through arbitration any claim under title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 or any tort related to or arising out of sexual assault or harassment, including assault and battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress, false imprisonment, or
negligent hiring, supervision, or retention.


It will be interesting to see how these provisions play out. 

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