NDAs & Forced Arbitration | Gretchen Carlson & Julie Roginsky | 2024 MAKERS Conference

Leslie Russo led a conversation with Gretchen Carlson and Julie Roginsky, former Fox News hosts and founders of Lift Our Voices, addressing the epidemic of toxic workplace culture and the silencing of survivors through forced arbitration clauses and non-disclosure agreements (NDAs). They discussed the origins of these practices, which they trace back to the Anita Hill hearings in 1991, where companies sought to silence employees to avoid public scandal. They emphasized the detrimental effects of NDAs and forced arbitration on mental health and the ability to seek justice.

Roginsky shared a personal story highlighting the impact of NDAs, where she was unable to assist a sexual assault survivor due to contractual obligations. This experience led her to advocate for legislation such as the Speak Out Act, which prohibits NDAs for sexual harassment and assault survivors and witnesses. They discussed the importance of education to empower individuals to understand and challenge these agreements and emphasized ongoing efforts to pass further legislation at both federal and state levels, aiming to eliminate NDAs and forced arbitration clauses for all protected classes, including age discrimination. They urged the audience to support these efforts and emphasized the need for cultural change to normalize speaking out against workplace abuses.