Why You Should Care About the Hobby Lobby Decision
By now you've probably heard all about the Hobby Lobby Supreme Court decision. We don't need to get into all the details here, but the bottom line is: This is a blow to workers' rights, especially for women.
The AFL-CIO Executive Council today condemned the Hobby Lobby decision made by five male justices as "radical" and said the ruling is a "major blow in the struggle for women’s health and threatens the Affordable Care Act’s goal of ensuring that all working families have access to cost-effective preventive health care."
The council said:
By allowing the owners of companies to pick and choose which provisions of the law they will follow, the Supreme Court’s ruling undermines workers’ rights and, in particular, will make it much more difficult for women to get access to the care they need. The decision also raises the specter of employers arguing that religious objections should override their responsibilities under minimum wage, civil rights and other workplace laws.
The ruling underscores the Supreme Court's disturbing trend of asserting corporations are people and this time, apparently, implying women aren't. There's been even a recent disturbing report that a Hobby Lobby retail location allegedly fired a worker because she was pregnant.
The council continued:
The AFL-CIO strongly supports the Protect Women’s Health from Corporate Interference Act, which would overturn Hobby Lobby and prevent the owners of companies from denying their workers essential health care coverage. We commend Sen. Patty Murray and Rep. Louise Slaughter on their leadership on this issue and urge swift passage of the legislation.
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This has been reposted from the AFL-CIO.
