Washington State Senator Wants To Ban Non-Disclosure Agreements For Sexual Harassment

Washington state Sen. Karen Keiser says she wants to encourage disclosure of sexual harassment and sexual assault in the workplace. To that end, the Democrat introduced legislation December 4 that would place limits on non-disclosure agreements.

Specifically her proposal would make it illegal for employers to restrict what a victim of workplace sexual misconduct can say publicly.

“It is basically taking the very ubiquitous and commonplace nondisclosure agreement now and carving a waiver out for the reporting of sexual harassment or sexual assault incidents,” Keiser said.

Keiser’s bill would also prohibit employers from firing or otherwise retaliating against an employee who speaks out about these issues.

Non-disclosure agreements are often a condition of employment. Usually they’re aimed at protecting trade secrets and other proprietary information. But they can also include blanket provisions that prevent employees from saying anything that could hurt the company brand or stock price.