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Weeks v. Southern Bell
In 1969, with the support of the NOW Legal Committee, Roberts argued the first sex discrimination case appealed under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964: Weeks v. Southern Bell. The decision in this case stated that employers could not refuse to consider a woman for a job unless “all or substantially all women” could be proven incapable of performing the tasks required. In addition to the judgment, the judge ordered that Weeks be promoted to switchman and Weeks received $31,000 in back pay and commuting expenses. The ruling was a huge victory for women and for NOW, proving NOW's investment in arguing sex discrimination lawsuits could have a positive result.

Weeks had worked as an operator for many years when she applied for a higher paying position as a switchman at Southern Bell. She was denied on the grounds of a Georgia state law that women employees could not be made to lift anything heavier than thirty pounds. After losing her legal appeal in district court, Weeks began writing all company reports by hand in protest, rather than carry her thirty-four-pound typewriter to her desk, which resulted in her suspension. Roberts represented Weeks in her subsequent appeal before the Fifth Circuit, during which she successfully argued that the idea that no woman could lift more than thirty pounds was illogical, given that many women routinely carry children weighing thirty pounds or more.

Sylvia Roberts' small stature, height of 5'2", was advantageous during Weeks v. Southern Bell when she used all the tools involved in a switchman's job as evidence, walking around the courtroom carrying each item and demonstrating the absurdity and discrimination of the weight limitation rules.