This old article shouldn’t be forgotten: Congress Slush Fund of $18 million for #MeToo claims

Isiah 3:3-5 “the commander of fifty and the dignitary, the counselor, the cunning magician, and the clever enchanter. 4“I will make mere lads their leaders, and children will rule over them.” 5The people will oppress one another, man against man, neighbor against neighbor; the young will rise up against the old, and the base against the honorable.

Important Takeaways:

  • $18.2 Million Congressional Slush Fund for #MeToo Claims
  • Since 1997, the Office of Congressional Workplace Rights has paid out $18.2 million to settle 291 cases of workplace disputes for Congress, the Capitol Police, the Architect of the Capitol, and the Library of Congress.
  • When news first broke of the settlement account, Congress was accused of having a veritable #MeToo slush fund to secretly pay off victims of sexual harassment. Reports surfaced that then-Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.) negotiated a secret settlement with a female staffer who accused him of sexual misconduct, and the 88-year-old quickly resigned from Congress.
  • It turns out Conyers’ Congressional office budget paid out his sexual misconduct settlement, meaning that total wasn’t even included in the multi-million-dollar “slush” fund’s reported total.
  • A 2019 report noted 16 employees were paid a total of $600,363 in settlements, and while 20 claims were filed, just 16 appear to have been filed by protected class: three under “Sex/Gender/Pregnancy,” three under “National Origin,” four under “Disability,” and six under “Race/Color.”
  • Let’s open the books.

Read the original article by clicking here.

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