JEFFERSON CITY, MO.(AP)-A Missouri House panel has endorsed legislation changing the legal standard for proving workplace discrimination and limiting the amount of damages victims could recover in lawsuits. The measure would require a showing that discrimination was a “motivating factor” not simply a contributing factor in an employer’s action against an employee. It would also tie the maximum punitive damages a victim could recover in a lawsuit to the size of the employer.
Monday’s committee vote sends the bill to the full House. Senate leaders have indicated their chamber could take up a similar measure as early this week. Democratic Gov. Jay Nixon vetoed similar legislation last year, saying it would have rolled back decades of civil rights progress.
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