Originally from: AAA Handbook on Employment Arbitration and ADR - 2nd Edition

The United States Supreme Court decision in Gilmer v.Interstate/Johnson Lane Corp.1 enforcing mandatory arbitration2 for statutory employment discrimination claims continues to create a rift in the employment community. Some employers have embraced such agreements, even going so far as to require assent to one as a term and condition of employment. The critical reaction to mandatory arbitration agreements has led to congressional consideration of legislation—the Civil Rights Procedures Protection Act—that would prohibit involuntary arbitration of employment discrimination claims altogether.3 To protect both the employer and the employee, such agreements and the substantive and procedural laws governing them must ensure fairness to all parties. This chapter examines the benefits and disadvantages of mandatory arbitration agreements for statutory employment disputes, concluding that protection of employee rights may encourage their enforceability.