Raising Awareness of Damage Done By Mandatory Arbitration and Supporting the Fair Act

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Ms. FRANKEL. Madam Speaker, it is great to be with the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Speier). I thought maybe we could have some sort of a colloquy. The gentlewoman looks like she is up to it.

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Ms. FRANKEL. First all, I want to thank the gentlewoman for her leadership.

And I also know that Representative Hank Johnson has also been involved with the FAIR Act.

First, I want to just make a statement.

Forced arbitration deprives men and women--not just the women, but men--of fundamental legal protections and also prevents--this is important--the public from knowing about the harm that corporations often create or the secrecy of arbitration.

So I am very pleased to join you in supporting the Forced Arbitration Injustice Repeal Act, or FAIR Act. So, you know, I want to talk to you about a woman named Lilly, but I want to read this to you. This is an advertisement from a massage spa that Lilly went to. And this is what it says, ``The world is out to get you. Thankfully, we got you. Stress can take a toll on your body, and even though your body works hard to keep it up, it needs help. Keeping your body running efficiently should be high on your to-do list, and regular massage is a key to operating at peak efficiency. Keeping your body in optimal working condition with routine massage along with rapid tension relief and total body stretch is easy at any Massage Envy franchise location.''

Now, I would assume you would agree it is pretty appealing.

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Ms. FRANKEL. Anyway, this is the advertisement. We got your back. And the fact of the matter is, as I said, The world is out to get you. Thankfully, we got you. And they did get Lilly, who I am here to talk about today, because on her visit to the Massage Envy Spa she was sexually assaulted.

First, she tried to get--it is one of these things where you sign up and get a series. So, first, she tried to get out, and she had to get the app, and she tried to cancel her membership, which she wasn't even allowed to do because in the little fine line it said, you have to go to arbitration.

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Ms. FRANKEL. I yield to the gentlewoman from California.

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Ms. FRANKEL. Right.

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Ms. FRANKEL. Right. And she didn't want to go back because she was sexually assaulted. And so, we are not talking about, obviously, she can make a criminal claim, but she wanted to actually get out of having to continue to pay Massage Envy.

She is just an example of, literally, the many women this has happened to. There was an investigation. There are about 1,200 of these franchises across the country, and BuzzFeed did an investigation, and they found that there were about more than 180 women who had been sexually assaulted at these spas.

Now think about this, aside from the criminal consequences, which obviously there must be, the company does not want to let you out of your contract unless they force you to arbitration.

Maybe you can explain again why forced arbitration is really so contrary to our system of justice?

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Ms. FRANKEL. Is it true that in many of these arbitration cases that the company actually gets to choose the arbitrator and then the arbitrator--it is the same arbitrator, and then what are the implications of that?

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Ms. FRANKEL. And, obviously, the arbitrator wants to be rehired. And so the power is with the employer. And I think it is important to know, and I think we can help.

We have been talking today about instances of sexual abuse and sexual harassment, but what people should know is that these arbitration agreements touch almost every part of our life. For example, when you go into a doctor's office or a hospital.

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Ms. FRANKEL. So what this means in practical terms, we always think if we are harmed or we are wronged that we should have our day in court where a judge or a jury can hear evidence publicly and decide the case. But really what we have now is this system, I call it the system of injustice with this forced arbitration that is secret that is really weighted towards the corporation.

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Ms. FRANKEL. And, again, just to emphasize this, maybe you can give some examples of how this results in a coverup of wrongdoing that really keeps other people, whether they are employees or consumers, from being protected?

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Ms. FRANKEL. And one more point, if you can emphasize again, when you go into arbitration, does it cost the consumer or the employee money?

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Ms. FRANKEL. So before I let you go on with your next story, can you just reemphasize again exactly what this legislation will do?

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Ms. FRANKEL. Well, I think you will bring a lot of justice to people all over the country, and I want to thank you for your leadership.

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