The MeToo movement has changed a lot over the last few years, and the cause has become a defining part of modern history. It's been responsible for a lot of both positive and controversial change, and it's been quite an amazing journey to see how the cause has progressed. In light of how long it's been, today, we're going to be looking into the seven most significant changes that the MeToo movement has brought about.
Protecting Workers is Now Law
The federal sexual harassment statute, as well as most state laws, do not cover independent contractors; the rules only apply to employees. As a result, those who are nominally self-employed, such as actresses, makeup artists, and Uber drivers, may have limited legal options if they are harassed on the job.
However, in some areas, this is beginning to change. In 2018, New York expanded its sexual harassment statute to include independent contractors, and in 2019, it strengthened domestic worker safeguards. In 2018, California's law was updated to provide rights for those harassed in a broader range of business transactions, including, most significantly, connections with producers.
The Time's Up Legal Defense Fund Has Assisted Over 3,600 People
Filing a sexual harassment case can be prohibitively expensive for many people. That's why Time's Up, a group of Hollywood women dedicated to ending sexual harassment, established the Time's Up Legal Defense Fund to assist survivors of sexual assault, particularly in low-wage professions, in obtaining legal representation. According to a data sheet by Time's Up, since the fund's inception in January 2018, it's raised over $24 million and linked 3,677 people with attorneys to pursue legal action.
This is a huge number of people and certainly wouldn't have been the case without the efforts of MeToo inspiring people to be proactive in making positive changes, standing up and speaking about what's right, the experienced sex crime lawyers playing their part, and of course, the people who have helped to fund and raise awareness about such causes.
The Movement To Abolish The Tipped Minimum Wage Is Gaining Traction
Restaurant workers are frequently forced to put up with client harassment for fear of losing a tip if they report the conduct or try to stop it. Because the federal minimum wage for servers and other workers is only $2.13 an hour, losing tips means losing the capability to pay basic bills for many people. The concept behind the "tipped minimum wage" is that workers make up the difference in tips, and then employers are supposed to total the difference if the tip value falls short. This does not always happen.
As a result, restaurant employees and their supporters have long claimed that eliminating the tipped minimum wage is essential to combating harassment. Seven states have already done so, and the idea has gained traction as a result of the #MeToo movement. Recently, legislation in Massachusetts, as well as other locations like Chicago, has been suggested to force tipped workers to receive the same minimum wage as other workers.
Summary
In reality, these three positive effects of the MeToo movement are just the tip of the iceberg to what the movement has achieved, and it should go without saying that we're sure the movement will continue to make positive changes moving into the future. Watch this space since the battle isn't over yet.
